Toki no Sabaku
by mistressinwaiting
Summary: Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life? -SEQUEL TO AKATSUKI NO KURUMA-
1. 1st Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

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**Yay! I'm _so_ happy, not just because this is my 24th fanfic but because it's also the sequel to my hit fanfic _Akatsuki no Kuruma_! Hooray! Thank you for those who have waited for this so patiently! And thank you for continuing to stay with me while I continue the series! I promise I _will_ work hard to live up to your expectations! And remember, after this, there _is_ a third sequel to _Akatsuki no Kuruma_!**

**Oh, and for those who have _NOT_ read Akatsuki no Kuruma, here's a short summary of important things. Ahem… After her encounter with Sasuke, Sakura was "_kidnapped_" by the Akatsuki because her father, Pein, was worried about her. Konan is revealed to be her mother. Their relationship wasn't so good, and so Itachi was the one who helped repair that bond. Konan is then revealed to be pregnant. In all this, Madara/Tobi makes himself Sakura's god-dad, and the members of Akatsuki become Sakura's teachers. Few months later, the members of Akatsuki die in the same way as they did in the original manga, and Isaribi from the anime filler episodes is recruited as Konan's midwife, bringing along the five-year-old OC Botan. The baby, Shion, is born a couple of weeks later. A few days later, Pein invades Konoha. Pein dies by Naruto's hand (same way in the manga), and Madara gets Sasuke to kill Konan. Now Sakura has an important decision to make: to stay or not to stay as Akatsuki's princess.**

**Thank you and, for those waiting, here's the first chapter of _Toki no Sabaku_!**

* * *

_The days when I heard your words,_

_Those fragments of a promise,_

_That time when we laughed with ease…_

_Those were carefree, distant days_

* * *

~The First Frame~

As Sakura just . . . well, she just stared. She really . . . _really_ couldn't believe her eyes. Uchiha Sasuke . . . her ex-teammate, the one that they were chasing, was standing right before her. She blinked her eyes, still unable to believe it. The last time she had seen him was almost a whole year ago… So how in the world…?

The only thing that was able to snap her out of this trance-like state was her baby sister squirming around in her arms. She quickly broke contact with Team Hebi's leader and focused on her sister. "Shh… Shion… Give your older sister some face, huh?"

Karin, shocked, just glanced down at the floor. _So these are the daughters that Konan had left behind… The daughters that _we_ had helped made orphans…_

"Tobi-san—no… Uchiha Madara, just what's going on?" Isaribi asked, a snarl in her voice while her eyes glared at the mask-wearing man.

Sakura's eyes widened, glancing at her supposed god-father. _Uchiha . . . Madara? The rival of the first Hokage? But isn't he supposed to be _dead_?_

Madara chuckled at Isaribi's inquiry. "A servant girl shouldn't ask too many questions."

Sakura and Isaribi both were taken back by the statement. Since when did Tobi speak so seriously and . . . darkly?

"Sakura, I'd like to speak to you."—he glared at the Konan's midwife—"_Privately_."

Isaribi knew what the man was insinuating. She didn't want to follow his orders, fearful of Sakura's safety. She glanced at her mistress, unsure of what to do.

"You heard God-dad," Sakura told her in almost a whisper, handing Shion to Isaribi. She had a feeling that her god-father wasn't going to be so lenient or pleasant anymore, so she had to take precautions for the baby. "Take Botan and Shion back to the room. Then, go make the preparations for Team Hebi and bring out some tea."

"Hai, Fujin…" Isaribi, holding Shion tightly, took one last glance at Madara. "This way…" she said to Sasuke's team, leading them out of them room. But glancing back at the Konoha kunoichi, she worried for her mistress.

As the rest of Team Hebi left, Sakura fidgeted with her fingers. Why was Sasuke staying? But she didn't ask about that. Something else was bothering her horribly.

"My mother and father…" she said to Madara, trying to avoid and not even trying to glance at her ex-teammate. ". . . Where are they?"

"I think you better sit down, Hime."

Sakura just stared at Madara. Unable to figure what her god-father was thinking, she forced herself to glance at Sasuke before sitting down, wondering what was going on.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Pein only wanted peace… He even revived those who had died… Sometimes I really wonder if him dying was really for the best…"

"Naruto-kun… You didn't kill him. You know that, right?" Hinata asked, trying to reassure the dobe. "Pein _chose_ to revive those who had passed on. In doing so, he sacrificed his own life."

The blonde sighed. "Yeah… But . . ."—he looked up to the sky—"I can't help but think of the two daughters he left behind."

"_Daughters_?"

"Yeah, that lady—what's her name?—Konan said that she was going to leave Akatsuki with her two daughters." Naruto explained. "I can't help but wonder how they'll take the news."

"Oh, Naruto…"

"Their father is dead… I don't know how they'll ever forgive me…"

Hinata didn't know what to say to comfort him.

But in a short while, Naruto grunted, standing up from his seat. "Well, enough talking, Hinata-chan! We've got a village to help repair!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

The tea cup shattered as it hit the rock floor. Sakura's hands had become limp when she heard the news.

As her mistress's breaths became more and more labored, Isaribi tried to support her. "_Fujin_!" She glared at Madara. Just what was _actually _going on? Were Konan and Pein _really_…?

"What . . . what do you mean by that?" Sakura asked the moment she regained her breath.

"Just what I said. They're both dead."

Sakura stared at him with widened eyes. If Sasuke and Isaribi weren't so distracted by the conversation, they would have seen that Sakura's face was the equivalent of a crazy lady gone mad. "_God-dad_!" the Konoha kunoichi cried.

"Must you torture her so?" Isaribi asked. "She isn't _well_!"

But Sakura ignored the girl's words. "My parents… _How_…? How did they die?" Even now, she couldn't believe that they were gone.

"Your father went almost peacefully. He died at Uzumaki Naruto's hand, his body completely destroyed." Madara explained, twisting the facts. "And your mother, on my orders, was killed by Uchiha Sasuke for betraying Akatsuki."

Sakura took a deep breath, glaring at her ex-teammate of her. "_Why_…?" she asked, her body trembled. Her glare shifted to the man in front of her. "What did she do to anger you so much as to have her _killed_?"

"She was going to kill _you_."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he glanced at Madara. Just what was he trying to accomplish, lying to her like this?

Meanwhile, the kunoichi's eyes widened. Sakura could hardly believe what she was hearing. "_What_?"

"This can be continued tomorrow," Isaribi said, worried for her mistress. "Right now, Fujin—"

But Sakura held her hand up, silencing her mother's midwife, while her other hand clawed at the table. The others in the room were aware of that.

"She told me herself," Madara explained, smiling behind his mask but his voice was edging towards grief-stricken as he continued with his act. "She said . . . you looked too much like your father, a horrid reminder. She wasn't going to be merciful…"

Sakura held back tears, but she gave a small smile and scoffed. She knew she couldn't trust Madara. "Oh, _really_?" she asked, her eyes shifted downward. "That's strange… She had told me once that I looked more like the Hokage Tsunade rather than either her and Papa…"

Sensing Sakura's suspicions, Madara quickly thought of a cover for his propaganda. "Well, that's the reason she gave me."—he stood—"However, if you don't believe me, that's not my problem. But know this: she chose the baby over you."

Her eyes shifted back to Madara, the mad look in her eyes increased by tenfold. "I don't believe this… I _won't_ believe this until I see my mother's body!"

"_Fujin_…" Isaribi glanced at Madara, wondering what his true intention was. Her eyes shifted to the ex-member of Team 7. Did he _know_ what Madara was planning? Was he really in on all of this? And if so, how could he allow his ex-teammate to suffer like this?

"Heh, Sakura, you must stop dreaming and stop being spoiled," Madara said. "I may have played the fool, but that was only to survive. This is the real world. To have heard this news and yet you don't believe it? Perhaps you haven't grown up yet."

"How _dare_ you say that!" Isaribi yelled.

"Am I not correct?" Madara asked. "This world holds so much evil. Regret is never to be shown. Love may be deep, words may be true, but we can never be moved. The heart may ache, but we must take roots so as to not feel pain. Human affairs are just scarring tears, and hatred is held in everyone's hearts. Isn't that true, Sakura?"

But Sakura couldn't speak. Her tears didn't stop. Why was this happening to her?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Oy! You two! Come on down for some lunch!"

Hinata and Naruto glanced at the kunoichi who spoke. Ino stood on ground floor with three o-bento boxes in her hands. And so, when Naruto and Hinata jumped off of the building they were helping fix, Ino smiled.

"_Aremaa_…" she sighed. "You guys haven't even taken a break since we've started fixing up Konoha. If I hadn't called you down, you would have forgotten all about lunch, wouldn't you two?"

Naruto smiled sheepishly, scratching his head, while Hinata just blushed.

"Gee, it's nice that you care so much!" Naruto said.

"Well, this is all I can do for Sakura right now… Taking care of you while she's…" Ino couldn't even bring herself to finish the sentence.

"Daijōbu, Ino-chan…" Hinata said, knowing fully well of the girl's reason for sadness. It had almost been a _year_ since Sakura was kidnapped and still no lead as to where she was being held or how she was. "The Akatsuki lady Konan said that Sakura was fine…"

"Yeah," Naruto seconded it. "She told me herself, and she didn't seem like she was lying. Besides, what reason would she have to lie to us?"

"Yeah…" Ino tried to smile. She couldn't let anything upset her especially at times like these. "Anyway, come on… I worked so hard to make this food! I won't have it go to waste!"

Naruto smiled, but his eyes saddened before looking up towards the sky again. _Sakura-chan… Are you really alright?_

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Please don't be so sad, Fujin…" Isaribi said, wiping away one of her stray tears. Right now, they were back in Sakura's room. "You must mind your health… Konan-san and Leader-sama would be terribly saddened if they knew of your bereavement right now…"

Sakura held a hand to her mouth, trying to stop her wails. "I don't know _why_ I believed their words! If I hadn't forced myself to believe them, I wouldn't be in so much pain!" she cried. "I should've known . . . they wouldn't have kept their promise—they never did before, so why did I force myself to believe them _now_? Why did I act so stupidly? I've only hurt myself more!"

"_Fujin_…"

Sakura pushed her hand against her mouth, trying to stop her weeping even if it meant suffocating herself. Why had she been so silly? Why did she believe those two? So that she could suffer like this? She shook her head furiously. She stopped when her eyes fell upon her sister, sleeping peacefully with Botan's arms wrapped around her.

_"She chose the baby over you."_

"Will my happiness come after you've gone?"

"_Fujin_…?" Isaribi glanced at Sakura, confused. What happened next, she couldn't have imagined…

Sakura stood up from her seat and walked over to the bed, forcibly taking the baby out of Botan's hands and into her arms.

"Fujin?" Isaribi followed Sakura out of the room. Botan also followed, forced awake when his small master was taken out of his hands. "_Fujin_!"

Passing by the hallway, Karin had seen the whole exchange and hid in the shadows, following them.

Isaribi grabbed Sakura by her arm, but the kunoichi kept on walking. "Fujin, what are you going to do with Shion?" But Sakura gave no answer, worrying Isaribi even further. "_Fujin_!"

Sakura stopped in front of a small pond.

"Fu . . . jin…?" Botan asked, his head cocked to the side once he caught up.

Sakura glanced down at the baby who was now smiling at her in her arms. "Don't hold this against me…" she cooed, smiling. Her face suddenly turned wicked. "You forced me to do this." And she threw the baby into the pond.

"Ah! _Shion_!" And Isaribi jumped into the pond after the baby.

"Leave her be!" Sakura yelled. "That child _deserves_ to die…"

Isaribi turned around to glance at her mistress. "Fujin! You promised your mother that you'd take care of your younger sister!"

"If she doesn't keep her promises then why should _I_?"

"Because she's the only thing you have left of your parents!"

Sakura held back her tears, taking few breaths to calm down. Why was Isaribi taking the child's side?

"Fujin, don't let Madara trick you like this!" She reached out for the baby.

"_ISARIBI_!"

The girl stopped and stood up, not even glancing back at her mistress. "I may not know how it's like to believe that fate is against me, and I may not know of your pain, but I know for a fact that the child is suffering, if not ten times, then a hundred times _more_ than you are! She's only a newborn, Sakura… She won't know of a parent's love… She won't get a chance to even have a memory of her mother or father… But shouldn't she be given a chance at life?"

Sakura just stared at the girl. She hadn't realized what she had been doing until it was too late. But she couldn't deny it. There had been a small shard of hatred in her heart, hatred directed towards the small baby. She couldn't deny she was happy when she threw the baby into the water, but…

_"It's good to see you two getting along so nicely."_

_Sakura's eyes softened. "So we would! We're sisters, aren't we? Even though the father's blood may be different, we're from the same soul! We're soul sisters!"_

_Konan laughed once more. "I think soul sister has a different meaning."_

_"_So_? What of it?"_

_Konan shook her head. "Regardless, it would still be nice if Shion grew up like you."_

_"_Mama_…" Sakura was still confused, though._

_"Your kindness is large enough to embrace the oceans… Even though so much has happened, how much we wronged you . . . you still see your father and I as your parents. For that much, I'm grateful. I've never actually expected us to get along as a family again… But for it to have happen…"_

_"Mama," Sakura said. "What's there to be grateful for? I'm your daughter, you're my mother. There's no—"_

_Konan shook her head, holding Sakura's hands tightly. "Do you know how much I regret not being there for you when you were growing up? When you faced danger on your missions? When you suffered from heartache? Do you know how much I regret that? You can't _possibly_ imagine my pain and my guilt whenever I think of how I left my own daughter to survive on her own… How you could forgive me is _beyond_ me… If it were anyone else, they wouldn't have let it slide so easily."_

_"Mama…"_

_"I won't make the same mistake. I promise you that. I won't _ever_ leave you behind, ever again… I won't leave you, I won't… You have to believe that."_

"_SHION_!"

Isaribi's eyes widened. "_Fujin_!"

Sakura had run into the ice-cold water. Without even thinking, she dived into the water and grabbed the baby. Once above the water, Shion started crying.

"Fujin…"

Sakura held the baby close, she herself crying once she heard Shion's shrill cry. "Gomennasai, Shion… Gomennasai… Your older sister is so sorry… Forgive me, okay? I won't _ever_ do that again… I'll protect you, no matter what. I won't ever make you feel pain again, not like that ever again… I'm so sorry… Forgive me, Shion…"

And from the distance, Karin watched as Isaribi took off her outer layer of clothing and draped it over the two sisters. She watched as Botan helped the women out of the freezing waters. And as she watched them, Karin couldn't help but feel horrible. Was this what Madara was trying to accomplish when he said that these two daughters would suffer for their parents' mistakes? Was he trying to pit them against each other like Sasuke and Itachi? She didn't really know… All she knew was that she had to make it up to them and to Konan, too… She couldn't let Madara continue like this.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"What exactly do you plan on doing to her?"

Madara chuckled. "Why are you so persistent on this subject? Is it because she was your teammate long ago?"

Sasuke didn't answer.

"Anyway, my plans do not concern you…"

"The Hell it does when you _lie_ about what I did!"

Madara let out another laugh. "It was all just propaganda… I'll need a whole lot of it if that cherry blossom is to stay as Akatsuki's Madly Blooming Princess…"

And throughout all of this, Sasuke's hands rolled into fists, though he didn't know why.

* * *

**Aremaa = good heavens; oh my god; gee whiz**

**Daijōbu = don't worry**

**Fujin = madam; ma'am; milady**

**Hime = princess**

**Whew! The chapter's done! Yay! I hope I reached your expectations but, for some reason, I think this chapter is a bit rushed… It could be just me, but anyhow… Sorry that it's a bit short, but it's the first chapter. For me, first chapters are _supposed_ to be short. Oh, and a side note: to give someone face, in Japanese and Chinese (and maybe some other) language, means to not embarrass that someone. And I got the phrase "Madly Blooming Princess" from _Vampire Knight_.**

**Thank you for reading and please stay tuned to the next chapter!**


	2. 2nd Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

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**Yippie! Another chapter and in less than a week! Oh, and peoples, thank you _so much _for the reviews! I think that was the _most_ I got for just _one_ chapter so far! Thank you all again! I didn't know this fanfic was _that_ famous. Also, here's the layout of things. I believe I'll only make this fanfic seven chapters, so yeah… _Lots_ of things are going to happen in just one chapter (not counting these first two or the next one), so make sure you don't miss out on anything after the next chapter.**

**Also, I would like to hear your opinions. I know a lot of people don't like the original _Naruto_ manga because it's been going on for too long and it's getting too crazy, and I don't want to disappoint you. If you guys want, I'll insert little peaceful stories about Hinata and Naruto and the other peoples in the story or tone down the crazy in this story. So opinions will be great!**

**Thank you and please enjoy!**

* * *

_From those days, both of us began our journeys…_

_Wandering in the illusions of time,_

_Amidst the raging winds,_

_We happened to meet again_

* * *

~The Second Frame~

"Why are _you_ here?" Sakura asked, her bare arms wrapped around Shion as tightly as possible. The ice water hadn't affected Sakura as much, but it had taken its toll on Shion—she being much more smaller than her older sister and much younger. Shion had been close to falling into a coma, if not had been for Sakura's quick thinking and using her body warmth to heat the baby up. Sakura was thankful that she was able to save her sister, but Shion's cry had also been altered. There was no changing how Shion now sounded as if she were a Tibetan wailing when she cried.

"I wanted to make sure you were alright…" Karin murmured, unable to look the Konoha kunoichi in the eyes. She could still feel the guilt of murder on her hands especially since Sakura herself thought it was Team Hebi who had been the ones that had killed her mother. Even if they weren't _totally_ responsible, Sakura's scrutinizing glare was worse than Sasuke's death glare and caused Karin to feel more than ten times as guilty than she really was.

Isaribi scoffed. "As if we'll believe _that_!" she sneered. "Madara sent you, didn't he? Are you happy now? Look at what you did! Look at the outcome! If it had not been for you and your team—"

"_Isaribi_!" Sakura exclaimed. She did not need to hear anymore. Plus, Botan was also in the room. The child need not soil himself with such talk.

But as Karin watched Shion squirm in Sakura's arms and Sakura wrap the blankets around her and her sister tighter, she felt much worse. Of all things to happen… If the baby had stayed in the water for just a few more seconds, she would have died. Moreover, Sakura herself could have become frail and weak as she had also gone into the water just after she had recovered from a small cold. Even now with the heater on and ten blankets around them, the two sisters were still shivering.

". . . Madara really didn't send me…" Karin said in almost a whisper as Botan draped another blanket around Sakura and her sister. She still couldn't bring herself to meet Sakura's eyes. "I . . . just wanted to see for myself if you two were alright…"

Isaribi turned away from the redhead, unable to believe her words. Why should she believe Karin anyway? She was on _Madara's_ side, and Konan had specifically warned her about people like her.

Sakura, on the other hand, just sighed. Should and _could_ she believe Sasuke's teammate or not? She really didn't know. "Just . . . go."

And Karin, knowing that her presence was definitely unwanted, turned to leave.

"Ah…"

"_Fujin_!" Isaribi rushed to Sakura's side. Her worry increased once she saw Sakura's pained expression.

"What's wrong?" Karin, too, ran back to the bedside while Botan just stood frozen in his spot.

"I think . . . I think Shion is beginning to miss Mama more…" was Sakura's answer.

"_What_…? What do you mean?" Isaribi asked.

"She's . . . hungry…"

Isaribi just stared at the cherry blossom as Karin asked, "How do you know?"

"She's trying to…" But unable to put it into words, Sakura parted the blankets just a little bit. But that little opening was enough to give both women a glimpse of Shion's actions. The little baby was trying to breastfeed from her sister!

Both Karin and Isaribi saddened at that.

"Fujin…"

Sakura quickly wrapped the blankets around her and Shion, her tears beginning to fall from her eyes again. "I really miss them… Mama and Papa… I really don't know how I'll be able to support Shion in this kind of environment… She won't grow up happily like Mama wanted her to… I don't know what to do… The two people I've trusted the most . . . Sasuke and Naruto . . . they've both had a hand in my parents' deaths… I feel as though everything I believed in, everything I worked for and loved, is being destroyed! What am I to do…?"

Isaribi, unable to say anything, just embraced the girl, letting Sakura rest her head on her shoulder. Botan followed suit and hugged the pink-haired girl as well.

Karin, though, couldn't take anymore of this. It was all really just too sad to watch. And so, she left the room, closing the door behind her.

Isaribi took note of this and spoke, "Fujin, let's leave then."

Sakura's eyes widened and stared at the girl, picking her head up from Isaribi's shoulder. "_What_?"

"Botan, go and make sure no one's outside the door."

The boy nodded his head and ran out of the room.

At that minute, Isaribi repeated her words. "Let's leave. _Tonight_."

"_Tonight_?" Sakura asked, her astonishment grew into shock. "But . . . but we're not even _prepared_! And—"

"I already have our things packed. Some have already been sent to our place of shelter."

Sakura's eyes grew in size once more. "But . . . but where will we _go_?"

"To Amegakure. There, you _will_ have some protection from Madara. At least for a little while." Isaribi explained. "Once there, I will contact people I know, and . . . somehow, I _will_ return you to Konoha."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Oy, Karin! Where have you been?"

But the girl ignored Suigetsu's question and asked of their leader, "Why do you insist on helping Madara?"

Sasuke glanced at her, pulled out of his thoughts. "You already know why."

Karin's hands rolled into fists. "Yes, I know you want your revenge, but must you drag _others_ into this?" she asked, her voice raised. "Why must you go along with Madara's lie and tell your ex-teammate that _you_ were the one who killed her mother?"

Suigetsu and Juugo even Sasuke were surprised at the girl's tone. Since when did she talk like that to the person she _loved_?

"Why do you have to _pretend_ that you killed that woman?" Karin asked once more. "Your chidori didn't even touch her, let alone _hit_ her!"

"Oy, Karin, why are you so concerned about this?" Suigetsu asked. "It's not like we're going to kill the baby."

"But Sakura almost _did_!"

The male members of Team Hebi had their attention fully on Karin now, Suigetsu and Juugo's eyes were wide with shock while Sasuke seemed to have remained unmoved.

"She was so distraught, so hysterical! Do you even _know_ what this lie is doing to her?" Karin asked of Sasuke. "She threw her baby sister into freezing cold water! She didn't even know what she was doing! She—"

"What she does doesn't concern me," was Sasuke's reply.

"The Hell it _does_!" Karin almost screamed. "She was your teammate! Surely, there must have been _some_ kind of bond between you two."

The room was filled with silence as Team Hebi waited for Sasuke's retort, but there came none. The Uchiha himself was thinking over past events. A _bond_? Between him and _Sakura_? Yes, there had been one. He protected her—he _always_ protected her. And she . . . she _loved_ him, and she would've given her life up for him. But…

"I severed that bond a long time ago," the Uchiha said coldly and impassive. "And she knows that. Whatever she does now doesn't concern me anymore."

If this had been a reality show, there would have been dramatic music in the background and an audience going "Oh, _shit_! He did _not_ just say that!" However, since it was just a fanfic, Suigetsu and Juugo now turned their heads to Karin who looked as if she were about to boil over. If she had been a volcano, she'd be erupting very shortly. But luckily for the other two Team Hebi members, Kisame came in at that moment.

"I could hear you from down the hall," the swordsman remarked. "What's going on? A _lover's_ quarrel?"

"_Phfbt_! Hardly, as if…" Suigetsu almost laughed, but he didn't, given the tense atmosphere. And if Karin hadn't been arguing with Sasuke, he would've added something like, "You've got a lot of nerve coming into the same room as the guy who'll kill you and take your sword."

Kisame sighed. "Look, I'll give you the same speech I gave Pinkie when she became my pupil." He took a deep breath and was about to relay his speech, but…

"Wait, wait! You _taught_ someone?" Suigetsu asked. "_You_ taught someone? The Hell! Does this mean Pinkie's getting your sword once you die?"

Sasuke was also interested now. Sakura was taught by not only Tsunade but also a member of the Akatsuki?

"Heh, you've got your eyes on my Samehada, don't you?" The blue-skinned man chuckled. "Well, lucky for you, Pinkie has never been good with a sword."

"Oh, really?" Suigetsu asked. "Whew… Well, that's a relief…"

"_Really_, you're really something, you know that?" Juugo asked which ended up with Suigetsu just smiling.

Sasuke, on the other hand, just lost his interest. Why did he get himself so worked up for anyway? He knew that Sakura had her limits. Of course, sword-fighting would be _one_ of them.

"Well, anyway, about that speech…" Kisame cleared his throat. "You're all a part of Akatsuki now. There shouldn't be arguments inside the group, regardless if one of you has done something immoral. And—"

"Kisame!"

Sharky-sempai, as Sakura called him, was just fuming now. Why were people _always_ interrupting his speech? It wasn't like he was going to say something stupid.

"What is it, Zetsu?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"It's really bad… I've looked everywhere, but"—where White Zetsu left off, the black one picked up—"Pinkie and the baby brat are gone!"

"_WHAT_?" Everyone was out of their seats now, even Sasuke.

"What about the brat and midwife?" Kisame asked.

"Isaribi and Botan are also missing," White Zetsu answered. Black Zetsu asked, "What should we do? Shall I inform Madara?"

Kisame thought about it for a moment. It took a while, but his answer was, "No."

"What? But—"

"There's no big need to make a fuss about it." Kisame said. Then he turned to Team Hebi. "This will be my test for you guys. Bring Pinkie and her group back _alive_, and I'll see if you're good enough to be called my allies."

"What?" both Zetsu's asked. "Are you sure they can handle it, Kisame? After all, Pinkie's not weak."

"Heh, whatever she throws, we'll just throw it back at her!" Suigetsu boasted, cracking his knuckles.

"Heh, I wouldn't be so sure."

"Hm? Why not, Kisame-san?" Juugo asked. "You've just said that—"

"I know what I said," the shark-man replied. "I only said that Pinkie wasn't any good with swords, but I never said that we didn't find a weapon that suited her."

"What . . . weapon?" Karin asked.

"Does it matter?" Suigetsu asked, holding up Zabuza's sword. "Whatever weapon she uses, I'll just cut it up with my Guillotine!"

"Provided that she doesn't defeat you first with_out_ even using her Viper," Zetsu said.

The conversation caught Sasuke's interest once more.

"_What_? You two don't believe in our strength?" Suigetsu asked, grinning.

Kisame chuckled. "It's not that I don't believe in you. It's just that, though Pinkie hasn't fought anyone yet, we Akatsuki—though most of the original members are in the afterlife—take pride in our only student and her skills."

Everyone in Team Hebi widened their eyes again in astonishment.

"You _mean_…?" Karin couldn't even finish her sentence.

"Yep, Pinkie's the prized star pupil of not just me but _all_ of the Akatsuki,"—Kisame turned to Sasuke, wanting to see his reaction that most—"including _your_ older brother." And what he saw amused him.

Sasuke's hands, whether he knew it or not, rolled into fists. But whether it was because of the mention of Itachi or because Sakura had suffered through rigorous training, Kisame didn't know and neither did Sasuke himself.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Botan fell over the fallen branch, almost scraping his knee. Isaribi saw this and ran back to him. She took the two small bags he carried and knelt down. Even without instructions, Botan knew what to do. He got onto the girl's back and, once the group was going again, he looked behind them, keeping an eye out for any pursuers. This was the only thing he could do right now. If he were to help carry the bags, he'd just slow them down.

"Botan, are you alright?" Sakura asked, her voice below that of even a hushed whisper.

He turned back to glance at Sakura, nodded his head, and went back on lookout duty. Really, this was the only thing he could do for them right now with_out_ getting in their way.

"Fujin, we must _hurry_," Isaribi said. "We must make use of this time _now_ while no one notices our disappearance."

Sakura gave a nod and then glanced down at her sister wrapped in thick blankets in her arms. She was sleeping soundly now, but Sakura knew that, if they didn't reach Amegakure before the sun rose, Shion would be in trouble. Her cold was slowly turning into pneumonia. For the baby's sake, they couldn't waste any time.

Suddenly, Sakura stopped in her tracks.

"_Fujin_?" Both Isaribi and Botan turned to glance at her. "What's wrong? Is—"

But Sakura held up a hand to silence them. She needed to listen. Rustling in the trees… Water dropping on nearby leaves… She gasped, realizing that they've been found out. "Get out of the way!" She grabbed Isaribi's arm and dragged both herself and Isaribi both holding the small children out of the way of Kisame's jutsu.

"Oh?" Suigetsu said. "You missed them, Sempai. Your water prison jutsu didn't even come _close_."

"I know that!" said sempai yelled. He turned to face his student who was now glaring at him and Team Hebi. "Heh, so . . . how long did you think we were going to stay oblivious to your vanishing? After all, four people is such a big crowd…"

Sakura scoffed. "Why would I even _dream_ of eluding the Akatsuki's eye, Sharky-sempai?" she asked innocently. Botan jumped off of Isaribi, and Shion was passed to him. "Perhaps you're thinking too much… We only wanted to retire to someplace more quieter. After all, who _doesn't_ want some peace and quiet after their parents' deaths?" Her tone turned grave at her last statement.

As the wind blew, there was only silence between the two groups. There were only two outcomes to this.

Kisame sighed and drew his sword. "Come back quietly," he said, pointing Samehada at Sakura. "And we won't have to do this the hard way."

Sakura only laughed at this. "Do you really think"—her face and voice turned deadly as she took out her Viper—"that you can _THREATEN ME_?" As her chain whip stretched out, it was as though it were a real snake—a hissing sound went along with it as it moved.

"OUT OF THE WAY!" Kisame yelled to Team Hebi. And they all jumped off of the tree they were standing on.

They were safe, yes, but the tree did not remain undamaged. The whip had dug itself deep into a tree branch—even all the way through the plant—but that did not stop it. With Sakura's strong arm movements commanding it, the whip still moved. As it moved diagonally down the tree, the tree itself was sliced in half. And the tree itself was not a sapling. No, it was a large one—a few decades old, maybe even more.

"_Damn_!" Sasuke cursed under his breath. _So that's what he meant by Viper…_

Once the tree fell, dust covered the area. It was hard to see anything. But Sasuke remained calm. It was only because of this that he was able to hear Sakura's Viper and manage to dodge it before it pierced him. But the chain whip was fast and, with a sharp blade at its tail, Sasuke received a large gash on his arm.

And once the dust cleared, Sakura and her group were nowhere to be seen.

"Oy, brat!" Kisame was speaking to the Uchiha. "How can you still be standing?"

"What?"

"Take a look at the tree."

And Team Hebi did as Kisame advised, their eyes widening at the sight. Where the tree had been cut, it rot. Almost the whole tree even the part that still stood had rotted.

"_What_…? What kind of poison…?" Karin couldn't believe how strong, how quick, it was.

"The deadliest snake and plant poisons mixed together, Pinkie's own creation." Kisame explained. "What I don't understand is how you are still standing," he said to Sasuke.

"Almost all of Orochimaru's vassals are given immunity to all kinds of poisons," Juugo was the one who explained that to the swordsman.

"Ah… Then consider yourself lucky, Uchiha. Even if it _was_ just a small dose, you should be close to death by now. But even _with_ your immunity, if Pinkie wants you dead then it's possible so long as _she_ has her Viper."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Fujin, what now?" Isaribi asked as they jumped from branch to branch almost at lightning speed. With a jutsu from Sakura, Botan was able to keep up despite having Shion in his arms.

Sakura gave no thought about her answer. "It'll be better if we can go straight to Konoha, but Amegakure's closer. We'll go there and stick to the original plan."

Isaribi nodded her head. "I didn't see Madara back there, and Zetsu wasn't there either." Her eyes scanned their surroundings.

"There's no need to worry," Sakura said. "Madara probably doesn't know of our escape yet, and Zetsu's probably distracting him as we speak."

"Yeah…" But for some odd reason, Isaribi couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched almost as if they were prey to a much deadlier snake.

* * *

**Ooh… Who's watching them? Take a good guess, you guys! I think you all can guess who because of the manga and because of the words I used!**

**Also, I would like to take this time to explain. A chain whip is a martial arts weapon, but I based Sakura's fighting style off of Tuotuo's from the Hong Kong movie _14 blades_. And if any of you watch the movie then you know what I'm trying to do. Also, Viper is the name of Sakura's weapon! Just so you know!**

**Thank you and please review! But don't expect too much! I'm not good at fighting scenes! And so don't expect the next chapter to come out so earlier either!**


	3. 3rd Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

* * *

**Yay! I got a new chapter up! _Finally_! Thank you for all of you who waited so patiently! Love you all! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and other holidays. Sorry, this came out a bit late, but I had a whole lot of trouble with the battle scene in this chapter.**

**Also, I would like to address one _tiny little_ fact that no one seems to remember: Hinata's sister, Hanabi, and their father were _NOT_ in Konoha during the time of Pein's invasion. Just a heads-up because I _might_ just use that in my story, kay? But not right now.**

**So anyway, please enjoy!**

* * *

_As the crying sounded,_

_The scattering tears passed…_

_Were all that just wetting the desert of time?_

* * *

~The Third Frame~

"Hey, Neji-kun?"

"Yes, Tenten?"

"Why are you keeping quiet about it? About Sasuke attacking the brother of the Raikage?"

Neji sighed. He had no easy answer to that. Heck, he didn't even know why he himself did that. And so he just gave his teammate the excuse he gave himself. "Tenten, if Naruto were to find out, he'd be devastated."

"Yes, I know," the weapons mistress replied. "But wouldn't it be better if he heard it from someone he trusts and not some official or other shinobi?"

"Yes, it would be, Tenten. But . . . I'd like for him not to worry about it for now. When the time comes, he'll find out about it, regardless if he hears it from me or someone else."

"But . . . Sasuke being a part of the Akatsuki… Once Naruto finds out—"

"Right now, it'd be best if his mind is clear. He's got enough to think about, what with Haruno-san's kidnapping."

Tenten nodded her head in agreement. "Speaking of Sakura-chan's disappearance, Ino said she was kidnapped by Akatsuki members. You don't think that they…?"

"If they meet then it's their fate."

"I thought Naruto already set you straight about all that destiny talk!"

"Yes, he did. I'm just speaking metaphorically."

"Oh…" Tenten almost blushed. She felt so stupid. "Carry on…"

Neji sighed once again. "If Haruno-san was to meet up with Sasuke then she will know what to do. If she doesn't then she'll come up with something. You have nothing to worry about. Sakura-san is a smart girl, just like you are. Just like you, she'll find a way to make things work, regardless if she couldn't stop him from leaving the village way back when."

It was Tenten's turn to sigh. "I hope you're right, Neji… I hope you're right…"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"What do you mean?" Kisame asked, a sneering tone in his voice.

"Just what I said," Karin answered, trying to make herself believable. "Their chakra signatures have disappeared. It's almost as if they've vanished into thin air! I _can't_ find them!"

And just a bit to the south of Kisame and Team Hebi's position, Sakura's group hid in the trees above. They had been there for a while, seeing the whole scene play out. Only one thought ran through their minds: why was _Karin_ helping them? They had no answer and, though Karin seemed sincere about helping them, both Isaribi and Sakura couldn't bring themselves to believe the redhead. If it was a trick then it would be horrible for them if they fell for it.

"Karin, are you _sure_ you can't find them?" Suigetsu asked again. "Or did you lose your skill?"

"_IDIOT_! 'I can't find them' _means_ what it says! I can't find them!" Karin yelled once more. "Would you stop pestering me about it? I haven't lost my skill! I just can't _find_ them!"

Karin might have convinced Suigetsu and Juugo, but Sasuke saw right through her act. He had known for a long while already that Sakura and her group were hidden just a bit away from them. He was about to say something but…

"Heh…" Kisame wouldn't hear anymore of this. He brought his sword to Karin's neck. "Look, girl. The jig is up. I _know_ you're lying."

"_What_…? What are you talking about?" Karin asked, trying to keep her cool. "I'm a sensor ninja! If I can't find someone, it _really_ means I can't find them! Why would I lie about it? I have no connections to that pink-haired bitch or her group! I don't owe them _anything_! Why would I even help _them_?"

"Who do you think you're fooling?" Kisame chuckled. "It's been entertaining, but I've got a job to do, and I won't let your pity towards them get in my way! Now, tell me where the cherry blossom is before I chop off your head!"

Karin bit her bottom lip, trying to plan out her next move while Sakura and Isaribi watched with anticipation for her answer. Would she rat them out or sacrifice herself for them?

The wind picked up, and a lone sweat drop ran down Karin's face. But in the end, her answer was . . . "I don't know _where_ they are!"

"Heh, suit yourself!" Kisame said as he raised his sword. But before he could bring it down on Karin, a loud hiss ran through the forest—Sakura's Viper knocking Kisame's Samehada right out of his hand and far from his reach.

But Kisame only smiled once he saw Sakura and her group jumping down into the clearing. "Heh, I knew you couldn't resist returning the favor. It's in your nature to help those who have aided you, am I correct?"

Sakura scoffed. "No matter how good they are, all men are arrogant bastards." she said before turning over to Karin. "If you really want to help me then make sure my ally gets out alive!"

"Wha…" But before Karin could even get the question out, Sakura yelled out Isaribi's name.

"Hai!" was the maidservant's reply as she leaped into the air and kicked Kisame in the face. He slammed into a tree as she landed on the ground, her fists out and in a kung-fu stance.

"So . . . the maid knows how to fight?" Kisame asked as he wiped away the blood he had coughed up earlier before.

"Of course!" Sakura was the one who answer. This time, it was _her_ turn to be arrogant. "Did you _really_ think my mother would choose a midwife who _couldn't_ protect herself?" She turned away from the Akatsuki member. "Isaribi! I expect you to come back alive!"

"Hai, Fujin!"

And with that, Sakura gathered Shion and Botan in her arms and ran out of view. But Sasuke was quick to follow.

"Oh, no, you _don't_!" Isaribi tried to catch up to the Uchiha, but somebody got in her way—_two_ somebodies.

"Sorry, but we've got a job to do." Suigetsu said with a smile.

"Forgive us," Juugo added.

Isaribi cursed under her breath. She needed to finish this. _Fujin, don't look back! Keep running!_

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Shizune couldn't help but cry. In the form Tsunade was in now, she couldn't help but let her tears fall down. She had been with the gambling lady for years now. She had never seen Tsunade like this. She didn't know if Tsunade would even make it through this, let alone make it through that jutsu.

"Shizune-san, please don't cry… Tsunade-sama wouldn't like it to see you like this."

Shizune wiped away her tears. "I know, Kakashi. But still . . ." She glanced back at the woman laying down on the bed. "Sakura's gone right now, and now even Lady Tsunade is…" She couldn't bring herself to say it.

"She's only in a coma…"

"But even so! The pain I feel is the same as I'd feel if she were _dead_, maybe even _more_! I don't know! All I know is that Lady Tsunade is like a mother to me! To see her like this…" Shizune couldn't stop the wave of tears as they rushed out of her eyes.

Kakashi could only console her by putting a hand on her shoulder. _I guess now would be a bad time to tell her Danzo is the new Hokage…_

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

As Sakura ran through the forest, she only kept her eyes in front of her. She wouldn't look back—or rather, she _forced_ herself to not glance back at her pursuer. It was only when Botan began to tug on her hair that she looked back but only to see that she could not outrun her ex-teammate.

"_Shit_!"

That word got her a strange look from Botan.

"I meant, shitake mushrooms, sweetie."

"_Oh_…"

And with that, Sakura quickly shifted Shion into Botan's arms and shifted them onto her left arm, using her right arm to reach for her Viper. She leaped off of the branch she was on and did an about-face, aiming her weapon at a large branch above them. Her Viper wrapped around the branch and, using her superhuman strength, she pulled the large branch down and right between herself and her ex-teammate. But she knew that wouldn't stop him for long. She withdrew her weapon as she jumped down towards a nearby clearing.

"Botan," she said as she placed him on the ground, her sister in his arms. "This is where we'll part for now, but I promise we'll meet up again."

"_Fujin_?" he asked.

"Listen to me, Botan. Right now, it's dangerous for you and Shion to be here. I need you to take Shion and hide, okay? Isaribi and I will go look for you once we're done here."

"But…" However, Botan couldn't get a word out because Sasuke's chidori cut through the large branch.

"_Go_!" Sakura commanded, and Botan ran as fast as his little legs could take him.

Sasuke only watched as the boy carried the baby out of the soon-to-be battlefield. He wasn't going to stoop so low as to take them hostage in exchange for Sakura's cooperation. He wasn't that bad of a guy.

"_PAY ATTENTION_!" But apparently Sakura didn't know that. The new gash on Sasuke's other arm was proof of that. "Your opponent is _me_!"

"Hn… Suit yourself." And with that, Sasuke's sharingan activated.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Naruto charged, his shadow clones right besides him, kunai in all their hands. But Hinata was quick to see this and did a full rotation. And as the shadow clones hit her barrier, they disappeared into smoke one by one, two by two. The real Naruto wasn't there.

_He's gotten better… His training is paying off… _Hinata's rotation soon came to a stop, her Byakugan scanning the area.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Sakura's eyes raced throughout the forest. _Where…? Where…? _She couldn't afford to lose this battle. Suddenly, a realization struck her, compelling her to move. She jumped into the trees—and just in the nick of time, too.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Now it was Naruto's turn to look for Hinata. He had planned a sneak attack from above, but she had seen right through that and had taken refuge, completely out of his view. He forced himself to stay calm. He listened closely to his surroundings. The leaves rustling, the birds flying, the water rushing, shuriken cutting through the air…

_Shuriken?_ He quickly did a back flip, dodging the sharp weapons.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Once the shuriken hit a nearby tree, Sasuke saw the plant rot. _So . . . she means to kill me… _He almost laughed at the turn of events. Almost a year ago, it had been him who was trying to kill her, and it was she who was trying to bring him back. Now it was vice versa.

"I told you to pay attention!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Hinata's Gentle Fist knocked Naruto right into another nearby tree. However, when he dispersed into a wooden log, she knew she had been tricked. She quickly turned around.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

And she grabbed Sasuke's fist before it met her skin. Sakura quickly reached for a kunai, but Sasuke slammed her against the tree. She struggled for a while against his hold.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

But Hinata countered by kicking Naruto in the stomach. Once he was down, she charged at him.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

But Sasuke jumped out of the way, causing Sakura to hit a mere sapling. But that Sakura turned into a puff of smoke.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

During that short time, Hinata had taken the advantage and came behind Naruto then, all according to her little plan—

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

—Sasuke's sword in her hands, shocking the Uchiha. Since when did Sakura get the chance to take his weapon?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Hinata held the kunai to Naruto's neck and smiled.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"You weren't serious at all, were you?" Sakura asked. "You still went easy on me…"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Does it matter?" Naruto asked. "You managed to actually beat me, regardless if I held back or not."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Sasuke watched for Sakura's reaction.

Her eyes were watery, the hand that held his sword shook. "I don't know how I can still love you—_you_ of all people… You who killed my mother…" She threw his sword to the side, and she took a step back, but that was her mistake because that was when she felt a sharp pain in her back.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Isaribi felt a pang in her heart. She looked in the direction in which Sakura had gone off towards. _I have a bad feeling about this… _And she took off running.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"_FUJIN_!" Botan could hardly believe his eyes when the arrow embedded itself into Sakura's back. He was almost in tears when he saw her fall into Sasuke's arms.

"_Why_…?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. She glanced over to where Botan stood, her sister crying in his embrace. "Why must I be so weak? Am I cursed to forever be unable to protect those I love? I don't understand… Is this really my fate? Am I to be only this strong?"

Sasuke didn't answer. His eyes backtracked the arrow's path, only to be met with a sickening sight. His voice came out as a snarl. "_Kabuto_…"

* * *

**Hai = yes**

**Yay! I finish this chapter! Please tell me you guys liked it! I really can't write battle scenes, and I was horribly stuck on that battle for the longest of times! Switching Sasuke and Sakura's fight with Naruto and Hinata's training session was really the only thing I thought would be okay. Everything else was really, really bad! It doesn't look like it, but I really did work hard on the battle scene! I'm sorry if this chapter really didn't meet you guys' expectations! I'm so sorry! I bet you guys were waiting for something better! Don't worry! The next chapter will really be much better than this one! I promise you!**

**But nevertheless, thank you for reading and please review this horrid chapter! Also, Happy New Years!**


	4. 4th Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

* * *

**Yes! I got another chappie up! Yay me! Okay, there are just _three_ more chapters after this one before this fanfic ends, and then the third installment starts! So you guys, PAY ATTENTION or you'll miss out on some _serious_ action! And also, this one's gonna be _super_ long, so BE PREPARED! I myself think the beginning is a bit crappy, but the rest is nice and juicy, kay? Thanks, and please enjoy!**

* * *

_The hands of time engraved_

_Into our beating hearts_

_Were two totally different roads_

_Floating in the moonlight_

* * *

~The Fourth Frame~

"You did wonderfully, Hinata-chan!"

"Yeah, you really gave Dickless a run for his money!"

"Oy, Sai! It was _me_ who won in the end!"

"Yes, but only because you had your shadow clone go behind Hinata and put a kunai to her back, right after _she_ won! Now it says so in the books. That's called _cheating_!"

"_What_? Uzumaki Naruto _never_ cheats! Why, I oughta—"

"Naruto-kun, take it easy. Sai's just voicing out his opinions, that's all…" Hinata said, defending the ANBU Roots member. "You shouldn't take it so seriously. He doesn't mean anything by it. You _did_ won, after all."

Naruto _hmp_ed, crossing his arms. "Yeah…" _Why the Hell is she defending Sai? Oh, he'll pay…_

"Hey, Dickless, I also read this in a book before, but . . . are you _jealous_?"

Naruto almost choked on his ramen. "Wha-_WHAT_? Why would _I_ be jealous? And of _you_? Ha! _As if_!"

"There you guys are!"

"Kakashi-sensei!" Hinata greeted the silver-haired jonin. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Well, a little birdie told me that you _actually_ managed to beat Naruto. Is that _true_, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata blushed. "W-well, I . . . I _almost_ got him."

"Oh, so you _didn't_ win? That's too bad… I was hoping somebody would give this knucklehead a nice little butt-whooping… He's been getting a little bit careless since Sakura's not around to give him a nice whippin'."

"Oy, Kakashi-sensei! What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing, nothing…" Kakashi quickly shook off the subject. "Well, anyway, I'd say you two are getting stronger everyday now… Pretty soon, you'll be strong enough to bring _both_ Sasuke and Sakura back to the village. Or maybe you've _already_ grown stronger than them!"

"Kakashi-sensei, don't overestimate me…" Hinata replied.

"But I'm not! I _know_ you can do it, Hinata!"

"Yeah, and so do we!" Naruto added. "We'll kick the Akatsuki's butts and that creep Kabuto's too! And we'll _definitely_ bring the Teme and Sakura-chan back home!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Oh, look! She's waking up!" were Karin's words once she saw Sakura beginning to stir.

"_Fujin_!" Isaribi cried once Sakura opened her eyes. "Oh, thank the heavens you're alright!"

"What . . ."—she coughed as she sat up, Isaribi helping her—"What happened?"

"That damn man shot an arrow at you, and you fainted from blood loss!" Isaribi said, wiping away her tears.

"_Man_?" Sakura asked. "What man?"

"It was Kabuto."

Sakura's eyes widened, unable to believe her eyes. "But . . . but I thought Sasuke—"

"I thought so, too…" Karin said, gloomily. "But apparently, Sasuke-kun spared him. Once Sasuke-kun left, that creep absorbed Orochimaru's remains and turned himself into a monster!"

Sakura could hardly believe her ears. She slumped back into the bed.

"_Fujin_!" Isaribi cried again, worried about her mistress's condition. She and Karin both supported the weakened cherry blossom. "You mustn't strain yourself! You must mind your health! You're still not well! If you were to fall ill—"

"Even if I'm _not_ sick then _what_?" Sakura asked. "There's _nothing_ I can do, there isn't _anything_ to be done… We've missed our chance to escape… Madara and the Akatsuki were trouble enough, but now we've got to deal with _Kabuto_? He was trouble before, but now he's got Orochimaru's powers too…" She shook her head in disbelief, tears pouring out of her eyes. "We can't fight them at all… Oh, god… Why is this happening to us? What did we do _wrong_?"

"Fujin…" Isaribi had never seen the girl so in low spirits and so depressed. This only matched her form when she had found out that her parents were both _dead_. Her tears returning, Isaribi couldn't bear to see Sakura like this.

Karin, too, felt both women's grief—the tears also forming in her eyes. They were now caged birds in a lion's den… They could not escape now, no matter how hard they tried.

"You don't have to worry," the redhead said, wiping away her tears. "No matter what happens, I'll help you two. I won't allow you to suffer in this place."

"You…" Sakura glanced at the girl, unable to comprehend why Karin would help her.

"We're the only women in this place. Anthropologically speaking, we're the weakest of the group and so . . . we girls need to stick to together, through the toughest of times and the easiest…" Karin explained. She was hesitant to continue. "Plus . . . I _want_ to help you. I've wronged you already. I don't want to do that again."

Sakura and Isaribi exchanged glances. Though Karin had attempted to help them before, they still weren't sure if they could really trust her. After all, she was part of _Team Hebi_—part of Sasuke's group, the group that had _killed_ Konan. Could they _really_ trust her after all she's done?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Heh, so you want to join _our_ group?" Madara asked. "I sense an ulterior motive for such a proposition…"

"I have no reason to harm you," Kabuto explained. "Why, I just want to help you. It looks like you could need another hand around here especially with Sakura-san running amok."

Madara weighed his options for a moment. He knew that Kabuto was only after Sasuke but, even if he _did_ join the group, there was no way he'd defeat Sasuke. Plus, Kabuto would only be a powerful asset to Akatsuki especially with what the Uchiha had planned out.

And all the meanwhile, Kisame just listened to the conversation as Madara accepted Kabuto as one of their own. To be honest, Kisame was starting to regret ever stopping Sakura from escaping. How would he be able to face Itachi and the _rest_ of Akatsuki knowing that he had put their precious cherry blossom into such a dangerous situation? He should've let her go… Besides, the only reason why he had stopped her was so that she needn't be on the run from Madara for the rest of her life. He had only wanted to make her life easier. How was he to know that the task wasn't as simple as it sounded?

"So…" Kabuto continued. "What do you plan on doing to the girl and her group? Surely, they'll only bring us down."

Madara chuckled at Kabuto's words. "But, of course, I know that. However, I need the cherry blossom if I am to complete my plan. She seems to hold the key to both Sasuke and the Kyuubi Boy's downfalls. The baby, though, is another issue…"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Karin sighed as she felt Sakura's forehead. _Still burning… This isn't good…_

After a stressful talk, the Konoha kunoichi had fallen asleep but, even though she was seemingly peaceful now, Karin knew that Sakura was in over her head full of worries. If this were to continue then, Karin knew, Sakura's physical and mental health would have taken a great toll.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Isaribi? What is it?"

But the girl didn't answer, beckoning Karin out of the room.

At first, Karin was reluctant, seeing that Sakura was defenseless and helpless right now. If either Madara or Kabuto were to make a move now, she'd fear for the kunoichi's safety. But nevertheless, she stood from her seat and walked over to Isaribi, closing the door behind her.

"What's wrong?" the redhead asked once she saw the midwife's worry.

"Shion and Botan… I can't _find_ them!"

"_What_?"

"They're not in the room! They're not in the kitchen! I don't know _where_ they could be! I've already searched the whole hideout, but I still can't find them _anywhere_!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Nice going, Sasuke… We've lost our medic. _Now_ what are we going to do when we're seriously injured?"

"Suigetsu, will you stop pestering him about that?" Juugo asked. "Karin did what she felt right. It has nothing to do with Sasuke."

"Yeah, I guess you're right… But _really_, now not only do we have that arrogant bastard Madara to deal with, but we've also got that creep Kabuto to take care of! _Jeez_, it's not going to be so easy anymore with only just the three of us in the group! And—"

As Suigetsu rambled on, Sasuke didn't even realize that there was a conversation going on. In fact, he was thinking things over. Why was he so mad when he saw Sakura injured? In fact, why in the world did he hold back on her? It wasn't like he owed her or anything (though his Inner was saying otherwise since he left her on a bench and whatnot during the middle of the cold night).

He groaned, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know _why_ I helped her."

This caused Suigetsu and Juugo to stop talking and glance at their leader.

"Oy, Sasuke, you talking about Karin or Pinkie? Most likely Pinkie, right?"

That question only got a glare sent towards Suigetsu.

_Yep, most definitely Pinkie…_ the swordsman thought._ He only gets like this when she's brought up._

"Honestly, Sasuke, I don't understand _why_ we had to assist the Akatsuki in bringing her back." Juugo said. "It's not like she'd betray the group her parents created. That was probably the _furthest_ thing from her mind. Her baby sister's well-being was most likely her first major priority."

"Did I _ask_ you?" The Uchiha was almost fuming. Of course, he knew Sakura was incapable of betraying anyone without a concrete and adequate reason. He had already known what she was planning to do—heck, if she was Itachi's pupil then Sasuke had a _very_ good idea of why she attempted to escape Akatsuki's world. For the good of her sister, Sakura was risking everything to try and give her a bright future—something Shion could not have if they were to stay with the criminal group.

"So, really, Sasuke," Suigetsu picked up on the topic. "What are we gonna do about Karin? I mean, she completely _left_ us for Pinkie and her group."

"Just drop it, Suigetsu."

"But—"

"There's no need to go into this any further," Juugo explained. "Karin did what she thought was right. After all, even if none of us managed to land a hit on Konan, we did have a hand in her death. Karin probably feels as though she owes them."

"_Ha_! _Owe_ them? That—"

The door slammed open then.

"And speak of the devil, lookie what the cat dragged in." Suigetsu snorted. "What? Did Pinkie not accept you and you're just crawling back to us?"

"Oh, stow it!" Karin yelled after catching her breath. "Just _please_ tell me Shion's with you three!"

That surprised the guys.

"Why would you think _we_ have the baby?" Juugo asked. "We haven't even _seen_ her. Why?" He stood up once he realized how serious the problem was. "Is Shion _missing_?"

"How in the world do you lose track of a _baby_? For God's sakes!" Suigetsu asked.

"We didn't lose track of her, idiot!" Karin yelled, infuriated at Suigetsu's scolding tone. "We gave her to Botan while Isaribi and I were taking care of Sakura who—may I _remind_ you—was _almost _on the brink of _DEATH_!" She glared at Sasuke. "And no thanks to _you_."

But the Uchiha ignored that sneer. "You were the ones who left the baby with a child," he said. "It's only natural something like this would happen."

"You don't know _what_ you're talking about," Karin snapped. "When Isaribi came to Akatsuki as Konan's midwife, she trained Botan to take care of Shion if ever a situation occurred. Botan would _never_ be so clueless as to lose her! And besides, we can't find him either. It's only natural the girls and I would think something terrible has happened." In that last sentence, she mocked Sasuke.

Suigetsu and Juugo just stayed silent as the two started to argue it out. Really, joining Akatsuki was the _worst_ thing they _ever_ did. There wasn't ever a time of peace—or _near_ peace—anymore.

"I really don't understand what your problem is," Sasuke said.

"_My_ problem?" Karin scoffed. "_You're_ the one with the problem! How could you _betray_ her? _Her_! Even if she thinks you killed her mother, she can't even bring herself to _hate_ you, let alone kill you! She _loves_ you, no matter how much you've hurt her! You'll never come across a girl like her in a million _years_! I don't understand how you can bear to hurt her so much!"

"You think I _like_ causing her pain?" Sasuke stood now, towering over Karin.

It was that _one_ sentence that gave Team Hebi a clue as to why Sasuke was so worked up about this whole case.

She smiled a bit. "So . . . you admit it. Even _you_ know this is wrong…"

"Um… Did I come at the wrong time?"

Team Hebi turned to the Sharkman at the door.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked.

"Well . . ." Kisame's eyes shifted to Karin. Obviously, she wasn't wanted there.

"I'm leaving soon," Karin snapped, knowing fully well what the Akatsuki member was insinuating. "But first, I'd like to ask: do _you_ know where Shion and Botan are?"

"Yeah, in the clearing outside," Kisame answered, a bit reluctant to add the last part. "With . . . Kabuto."

That was all Karin needed to run out of the room.

"So . . . what's so important that you wanted Karin out of the room?" Juugo asked.

"Madara has another errand for you three to run," Kisame answered.

"We're not going to chase after Pinkie and her sister again, are we?" Suigetsu whined. "It was hard _enough_ that first time! You saw what happened and Pinkie's reaction! It was _hor-ri-ble_!"

"Well . . . apparently, Hime's reaction at this one will be _much_ worse."

Sasuke suddenly realized what the swordsman was getting at. "You're not saying…"

"Yeah…" Kisame sighed. "The baby needs to go."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Shion! Botan!" Karin yelled as she ran. She ran as fast as she could, yelled as loud as she could. She could only _hope_ that Kabuto had done nothing to harm the two children _especially_ Shion. Sakura would never recover from that. And so, when Karin came to the clearing, only to see a snake wrapped around Botan, she almost lost it.

"GET _OFF_ OF HIM!"

The snake, scared of the angry woman, did as Karin screamed and _poof_ed away as the redhead ran to the crying child, kneeling in front of him.

"Botan, Botan!" she said, turning his face towards her. "Are you alright? You're not hurt?"

He shook his head.

"Where's Shion?"

"Here."

Karin turned around when she heard that hissing voice. "_Kabuto_…"

"Give back the little mistress!" Botan shrieked. "Give her back!"

But Kabuto laughed. "You sound as though I'd _hurt_ her." And he threw the baby up into the air.

"_SHION_!"

Karin took a step forward, only to let out a sigh of relief once Kabuto caught the crying baby.

"You thought I'd drop her? Oh, give me _some_ credit. I'm not like Madara or Orochimaru," the silver-haired freak said. "Here, you can take her."

Karin slowly walked over to the man, afraid of any sudden moves he'd make. And as Shion was passed to the redhead, Kabuto feigned a drop, causing Karin to wrap her arms tightly around the baby who had begun to cry even louder.

"You mustn't do what I just did now," he said. "If you were to drop the baby then it would be disastrous. But saving her won't do you any good. She won't live to see another day."

Karin could only glare at him as he left. Just what did he mean by that?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Sakura fell to her knees, unable to cope with reality.

"_Fujin_!" Isaribi ran to her side.

"God-dad! _Please_! I'm begging you! Don't do this… I'd understand it if Shion were a boy, but she's _not_! She's a baby girl! Why must she die?"

"Uchiha Madara, how can you justify killing an innocent child, let alone a baby?" Isaribi asked. "She's done _nothing_ against you!"

"But her sister _has_," the Uchiha said. "This is her punishment."

"God-dad, _please_!" Sakura pleaded. "I'll do anything! Just _please_, don't kill Shion! She's all that I have left! I promise I won't betray you! I promise you won't regret it! Just please, God-dad! Shion's not even a month old yet! _Please_!"

"What's going on?" Karin asked, holding Shion with one arm while the other hand held Botan's.

"Ah, just in time." Madara said.

Seeing the Uchiha's menacing glare, Karin dropped Botan's hand, wrapping that arm around Shion too and shifting her to hide her from Madara's sickening glance. Her bad feeling just increased tenfold.

In time, Madara shifted his gaze back to Sakura whose tears seemed endless. "I'll give you a few minutes before I send Sasuke in to do the job."

Sakura's eyes widened in horror. Her ex-teammate . . . how could Sasuke even _dare_ to think about hurting her like this? And right after killing her mother! Did he really change that much? But once Madara left the room and Shion resumed her crying, Sakura was knocked out of her thoughts by her baby sister's unique cry.

"Here…" she said, her voice hoarse from her screams. She stood up, her hands reached out for Shion. "Give her to me…"

And Karin quickly did so, curious about what was going on. What job was Sasuke to do? And it suddenly hit her once she saw how tightly Sakura held Shion, how much she shook. _It couldn't be…! Madara plans to…_

"We can always run again… We can always fight them…" Isaribi suggested in a quiet voice, her eyes filled with sadness as she watched the two sisters. She took the words right out of Karin's mouth.

But Sakura only shook her head. "What good would that do? Would that do anything…? No… It wouldn't… We won't even come _close_ to being their match… We'd all just die… For everyone's sakes, I can't allow any of you to die… Botan's still so young, and we all still have our lives to live…"

"But so does Shion!" Karin argued. "She's only a newborn! She still has her whole _life_ ahead of her! She—"

"YOU THINK I DON'T _KNOW_ THAT?" Sakura shrieked, her head whipped up to meet Karin's gaze—her angry emerald eyes held an eternal helplessness in them. "My baby sister . . . not yet even _one_ . . . is condemned to death…" Her voice shook as she spoke. "But even if she were to _live_ . . . I can't give her a life that she'd want… A life that would suit her so… Living would be _worse_ than death… She won't even survive in this cruel fate…" She looked down at the baby. The kunoichi seemed as though she didn't notice her ex-teammate's entrance. "Of course, I want her to live… She's the only thing I have left of my parents… And she's my sister… I love her so much that I can't bear it, that I can't even stand it… She looks like so much like Mama…" Sakura continued, her voice barely above a whisper. "She's so adorable… So small, so defenseless… I can't understand how she was born into this world as my sister… Her existence . . . though so small . . . has affected me so much… I can't even thank her for that…"

_Konan sat up on her bed, caressing Sakura's face and combing away her hair. "Mama's so sorry… You don't know how much… I wish I could give you the life that you deserve, but instead you're stuck in a kunoichi's existence. There's so much I regret, so much I wish I could redo…" She glanced at Shion. "I don't want to keep on making mistakes that I'll regret later on… My experience with you has taught me so much. I hope that you can help me make better decisions for your sister. I don't want her to suffer life like you did. I don't want to see that for a second time. It'll be tough, but I promise you that I'll make it work out. After the invasion, I promise you I won't do anything else to hurt you…"_

"I can't even give her the life our mother wanted for her… I'm so useless… My apologies to her stretch farther than the oceans… I want _so much _for her to live… _So much _for her to stay with me…"

The people in the room including Sasuke felt horrible for Sakura. Her baby sister's life would soon end… How could she keep so sane? Perhaps she had already went mad…

The Uchiha sighed. "Sakura…"

But the kunoichi only scoffed at reality, cruelly laughing a bit. "It's always been my wish that the child will grow up to be as strong as your brother and you…"

That statement shocked the Uchiha. Had she noticed him?

"Not like me . . . so weak… Unable to protect my precious people…" she continued, a smile on her face as she watched her sister play with her hair. The scene made Sakura's heart drop. Her sister was so innocent, she didn't even know what was coming.

"Isn't that right, Shion? You'll grow up to be a beautiful and strong kunoichi, won't you?"

"Sakura…" Sasuke said again. "You know you can't see the child grow up."

Sakura's smile fell as she met the Uchiha's eyes, her tears dried up. "Sasuke-kun…"

"In this world, there will always be cruel twists of fate. My brother ended up murdering our family in order to save Konoha, and your sister will have to die even before she speaks her first word."

"Sasuke-kun! You can't be serious…! She's just an infant! I can't let you do this! I—"

"You, as a woman and her older sister, must be heartbroken at this fate… I, on the other hand, need to carry out my orders as a shinobi and to fulfill my duties to my clan. Hand me the child."

Sakura could hardly believe it. Was there no way to save her sister? Her tears started again to fall out of her eyes as she placed Shion on the bed, caressing the baby's cheek. The reality she had so desperately wanted to avoid, the fate she had feared . . . she had no other choice.

"I'll do it by my own hands," she said, her heart breaking as Shion's small little hands grabbed hers.

"Fujin!" Isaribi was crying too. Karin looked away, shielding Botan's eyes. and ears

"Don't do that," Sasuke said. He didn't know why he said that, though. He didn't care about her. No… In the end, he convinced himself that he just didn't want to see another pair of siblings break their relationship.

"I'm her sister… Since my fate is intertwined with this child, I should be the one to send her away with my own hands."

"Sakura…"

"It wasn't long ago that you've killed your brother. The burden must still be as heavy as then… I can't allow you to carry another burden so heavy such as killing an innocent baby." Her hand slowly moved towards the pillow. She held it above the baby, and soon Shion was crying harder than her sister.

For some reason, Sasuke wanted for her to stop forcing herself to do this. But for some reason, he couldn't stop her himself. "Sakura… Don't—"

"Even now, I can't bear to see you… I won't allow you to take away the last of my family…"

Sasuke suppressed a sigh. He couldn't argue with that. She still blamed him for her mother's death.

Sakura's hands shook as she took one last glance at her child. "I'm _so_ sorry, Shion… You'll have to go to Mama and Papa first… Remember, I'll always love you… Have a safe journey…" Her hands continued to shake, and it took a while before Sakura could actually bring herself to place the pillow right on top of her sister's small body. _Don't worry, Shion… After you've gone, I'll follow you shortly afterwards. I won't let you suffer alone in darkness… _With as much strength as she could muster, Sakura pressed down hard on her own flesh and blood.

As everyone else turned away, Sakura felt her baby sister struggle against her hold. She watched as the baby's hands moved up and down. She couldn't even shut her eyes or look away. She could only watch as her sister's movements slowed, and she watched as Shion finally stopped moving.

"My sister…" she cried. "My poor sister…"

"Sakura, Madara wants to see the body…" Sasuke explained.

"Please go out first…" she said. "I need to send her off in proper clothing…"

"Fujin…"

"Because of her cruel fate, she died by her own sister's hands, but I _will_ send her off in the clothes our mother prepared for her lest they go to waste…"

Sasuke sighed again, nodding his head before he left the room. Not to his surprise, he found Madara and the rest of the gang there.

"_Well_?" the older Uchiha asked.

"She killed the child with her own hands. Right now, she's dressing her up in funeral clothing," was Sasuke's answer.

Juugo and Suigetsu were left speechless. Zetsu only disappeared away while Kisame could only shake his head. If Itachi had been alive, he could've stopped this. Kisame could only lament on how angry Itachi and the other late Akatsuki members were with him.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

As Sakura finished dressing the child, Madara came into the room. However, she didn't notice him because something else preoccupied her attention. Her baby sister… Shion's chest, was it moving?

Karin, too, could feel the baby's chakra fluctuating. Isaribi, on the other hand, did not know. Wondering why the tension, she placed a finger below the baby's nose and, to her and the Uchiha's shock…

"The baby's still breathing!" Then she realized her mistake. But by then, it was too late.

Sakura's gaze went to Madara.

"What's going on?" he asked. "How could the baby still be _alive_?" His plan wouldn't work if the child was not dead. "If you can't kill her then I'll do it."

"NO! God-dad, I can't allow her to be killed _twice_!" Sakura yelled.

"She _needs_ to be killed! Don't you know the kind of fate she was born with?"

"What kind of fate? No, I don't know, and I don't _care_!" Sakura argued, yelling again. "From the start, I had no idea what was what and why was all this happening to me… I didn't understand… Why does my sister have to be born with this fate? I kept asking myself that… But I don't care anymore! She's my _sister_! I won't let her die!"

"Sakura, the child needs to be _killed_!"

"You can't be trusted!"

"_What_?" Madara, like Karin and Sakura, turned his attention to Isaribi. "What did you say?"

"Are you sure you're not plotting for something _bigger_? Something towards your _own_ gain?" the maid asked. "Konan had warned me! You can't be trusted!"

"You wretch, how _dare_ you insult me!" And with that, Madara took out a kunai and stabbed her in the back.

And from outside the door, the rest of the Akatsuki could hear Sakura yelling, "God-dad, are you crazy? What are you doing?"

Botan's "_Neechan_!" came shortly afterwards.

Sasuke went in the room—Juugo, Suigetsu, and Kisame following behind. Their eyes widened when they saw the bloodied kunai in Madara's hand and Isaribi on the floor injured, Botan by her side, crying, and Karin trying to heal her.

"What's going on?" Suigetsu asked.

"Shion…" Sakura answered. She didn't care if there were other people in the room. She went to the first one she knew the most. "My sister's still alive, Sasuke-kun! My baby sister came back to life…"

As with everyone else's, Sasuke's eyes widened. He stared at the child on the bed.

"Once maybe, but it won't happen again…" Sakura continued. "_Please_, Sasuke-kun! Please _save_ her!"

"Sakura…"

"_Please_! Save her!" Sakura fell to her knees. She didn't know why she was begging her ex-teammate who had tried to kill her once. She was just desperate—she was just _that_ desperate. "Sasuke-kun! Please . . . save her…"

"Sakura…" Sasuke said, helping her up. "Please don't do this."

Karin, Botan, and Isaribi could only watch the scene play out. They worried for the Konoha kunoichi and Shion. They had a feeling this would not end well…

Shaking her head, Sakura couldn't stop the tears from coming out of her eyes. Was there really no way to save her sister? She couldn't bring herself to believe that, no matter how fast it was coming true.

"At the age of twelve, you shunned me away. At the age of thirteen, you left me. At the age of fifteen, you tried to kill me. Now . . . I'll be the one to leave you," she said to Sasuke. "If you're going to kill my sister then . . . kill me first."

"Sakura, stop doing this." Kisame tried to reason with her. "It's just going to make it harder for you to part with your sister."

Sakura glared at him then stared at Sasuke. Would he not help her? It would seem so. In all her sorrow, she took out her kunai and held it to her neck.

"_Fujin_!" Isaribi and Botan yelled. She tried to stand with Botan's help but couldn't.

Madara almost smirked behind his mask. This was getting a bit interesting. Now he wanted to see Sasuke's reaction.

"What are you doing?" Kisame asked. "Don't do anything foolish! Put away the kunai…"

But Sakura backed away from him. "Even if you take this knife now, I will die… After Shion's death, I won't even have the will to live…"

"Sakura…" Sasuke finally spoke.

"Life without her is too sad to imagine…" Sakura's gaze met his. "I won't be able to bear the hell you're living through right now with your brother dead… I can't live like that… _Please_ . . . send me _with_ her…"

Sasuke sighed. She was still as naïve as she was from when they were genin. She still hadn't changed. If her sister were to die, he knew she would too. But what he did shocked everyone in the room. He . . . _hugged_ her and allowed her to cry against his chest, quickly taking away her kunai.

He sighed again, stroking her hair. "Why can't you stop being so annoying?"

Madara's eyes narrowed. _This was unexpected. _And in that second, he knew that Sasuke would be unable to carry out his orders. But he took matters into his own hands. With a small blade in his hand, he walked over to the child.

"What are you doing?" Sakura asked, trying to escape from her ex-teammate's grasp.

But she—and everyone else—had noticed too late. Madara had already stabbed the small child. At the sight, Sakura collapsed.

"Shion… My baby sister… You're too cruel, God-dad…"

"If I didn't do it then your ex-teammate would have had to do it." Madara explained.

"I saw no reason as to why the child could not live," Sasuke said.

"If that's the case then what would happen to your vow to destroy Konoha?" Madara asked. He turned towards the rosette. "If I had allowed the child to live, she would only have been a burden. You may despise me today, but you'll thank me in the future."

* * *

**And done! Please don't ask me what Madara said to Sakura to get her to see that Shion had to die. I couldn't think of one, so this came out. And like some of you may know, this scene is loosely based on the scene from _Ja Myung Go_. Thank you and please review!**

**(P.S. Read my new onshot, _LOVER_!)**


	5. 5th Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

* * *

**Yay! I actually got the chapter up! Yippie! I'm _so_ sorry I didn't get this up any earlier, but I was busy with Chinese New Year, so . . . yeah… Please enjoy! Oh, and I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but the beginning parts are based on a scene from _Ja Myung Go_.**

* * *

_Until here and now,_

_These hands turned over_

_The small hourglass so many times,_

_As we remained lost amidst the pouring rain_

* * *

~The Fifth Frame~

As Sakura stared at Shion, she wept a tearless cry. By now, all of her tears had dried up. But that was to be expected. She had been crying for the whole night. She couldn't bear the thought of saying goodbye. However, it was almost dawn now, almost time for her to bid farewell to her baby sister.

Madara had allowed Sakura to go by Amegakure's tradition of a funeral for the child but, as the kunoichi expected, he sent Zetsu and Kisame with the trio of women and the kids. The two men were outside of the horse drawn carriage, allowing Sakura to spend the night peacefully with her sister. Karin, Botan, and Isaribi were with her, of course. And speaking of Isaribi…

"In your condition . . . why did you come?" Sakura asked, her worry for her friend was dimmed by her sorrow.

"Fujin, your sister hasn't even had the chance to walk, and yet she's going on a long journey…" Isaribi explained, the searing pain in her back labored her breathing. Both Karin and Sakura had tried to heal the girl's wound but to no avail. The poison Madara used had spread too quickly. "Despite my injuries, of course, I had to come." She glanced at the baby in Sakura's arms.

Sakura smiled at her friend. Isaribi had done so much for her, and yet she couldn't even heal a simple wound in order to save her friend's life.

Karin's heart ached when she saw the little scene. She could do absolutely _nothing_ as everything played out. The only thing she could do, she realized as her hand tightened its grip on the envelope in her pocket, was wait for the right time to show Sakura her father's will as Isaribi had instructed her.

"The child is…?" she asked.

"Her light is almost out," Sakura answered, glancing down at her baby sister. "But she's still breathing…"

"If we remove the blade…" Isaribi suggested.

Sakura shook her head. "If we remove this, all the blood will pour out, and she will die." And her hold on her sister tightened, but she was still conscious of the blade that was left stabbed into Shion's heart.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"_What_?" Naruto asked. "Danzo did _what_? I can understand Sasuke, but why _Sakura_ too? She was _kidnapped_, for crying out loud!"

"Naruto, calm down," Kakashi said. "I understand where you're coming from, but the only reason why neither Sasuke nor Sakura are in the Bingo Book yet is because of Lady Tsunade's benevolence."

"But—"

"Kakashi is right," Yamato added. "Sasuke has been a rouge nin for almost three _years_ already. The statute of limitation has run out for him already. Same for Sakura. Though she's been taken against her own will, she's been missing for far too long. It's a stretch to even say that she's still _alive_, let alone working against Konoha."

Naruto gritted his teeth, his fists shook. He couldn't argue with them. He knew they were right.

"Then I'll go talk to Danzo!"

"_What_?" Naruto asked, his attention turned to the girl. "_You_, Hinata-chan?"

She nodded. "I'm sure he'll listen to reason!" the Hyuga stated. "We can get another mission to search for them right now. If we can find them now—"

"There's no use in that," Kakashi interrupted. "Sasuke has attacked the Raikage's brother. The Raikage is now asking for Sasuke's head."

"Then . . . then I'll go speak with the Raikage!" Hinata said. She wouldn't give up on them, she just wouldn't! "Sasuke and Sakura… They're . . . they're my friends! I won't give up on them! I can't, and I won't!"

"Hinata-chan…" Naruto couldn't believe her spunk. "I'll go with her!" he told the two jonin.

"I was hoping you'd say that," Kakashi smiled.

"What?"

"I was planning on going myself, but now that you two have given your opinions…"

"Wait, go _where_?" Naruto asked.

"To the Kage's summit," Yamato answered. "There, we'll be able to find the Raikage and try to get this whole mess sorted out."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"All this just for her sister…" the black half of Zetsu Zetsu sighed. "Sakura-hime sure is sorrowful…"

Zetsu and Kisame stood a bit away from the girls who stood with Botan at the edge of the river. Though both had spent little time with the baby, they couldn't bear the thought of having their hideout quiet again—of never hearing Shion's cries and laughter anymore.

"If Itachi were here . . . if they _all_ were here…" Kisame started, referring to the late Akatsuki members.

"Perhaps the outcome would've been different," White Zetsu finished.

"But they aren't with us anymore, and this is fate," Black Zetsu added. "This is how it ends for that girl, condemned to death and she's not even one yet…"

"You don't know how much I regret following Madara," Kisame snarled, his hands rolled into fists once he spoke the Uchiha's name.

"As do I, but we each have our duties. I know mine," Black Zetsu replied.

"But do you know _yours_, Kisame?" White Zetsu asked.

"_What_?"

"I must serve Madara because he created me," the black-and-white guy explained. "But your background is different. You're just someone he recruited. Your relationship with Sakura-hime, however, is different. She is your student and also one of the treasures Itachi was trying to protect from Madara. You do not have to choose the path I'm forced to. You still have a _choice_."

It was silence between the two freaks of nature now. Kisame did not say anything else on the matter. He thought about Zetsu's words, but he too was unsure of the role he was to play. Was he to continue following Madara's orders as he had done so far? Or was he to guard the cherry blossom as Itachi had done?

He did not dwell on it anymore than necessary. He knew his answer and turned his attention to the funeral procession.

"Here…" Karin said with out-stretched arms. "I'll—"

"No one is allowed to touch my sister!" Sakura yelled.

Karin was taken aback by Sakura's harshness, but she ignored it. Sakura had not slept well for a while already. Karin had known that the Konoha kunoichi would be grouchy.

"I'll do it…" the cherry blossom added in a small whisper, glancing at the small boat then back at her sister who was still asleep.

"But you mustn't step in the water… It's icy cold, and you've only just recovered from your illness (A/N: Sakura had a slight cold towards the end of _Akatsuki no Kuruma_, but I could not find time to incorporate it too much into this fanfic)… You mustn't—"

"She's my baby sister… I'll do _anything_ for her… And besides . . ." She glanced down at her sister's face. "This is probably the _last_ thing I'll be able to do for her…"

And with that, Sakura stepped into the river. The water was like a thousand needles being stabbed into every square inch of her skin. But she just kept her eyes on her sister as she placed the baby into the boat.

Seeing this as a cue to start her plan, Isaribi squeezed Botan's hand then. She smiled at him, a confused look on his face. With the boy in hand, Isaribi walked towards the river, Karin supporting her. The redhead had no idea what the girl would do. She thought she was just going to comfort the Konoha kunoichi, but she was wrong. Isaribi gave the boy one last hug, placing a note inside his pocket unbeknownst to everyone else, and placed him in the boat as well.

"Isaribi-neechan!" Botan exclaimed, a shocked expression on his face. Just what was going on?

"What are you doing?" Sakura asked of the girl. She, too, was surprised.

"Botan…" Isaribi said, tears in her eyes. "Go with the little master… You have to take care of her from now on…"

Sakura couldn't believe Isaribi. She knew the girl was loyal to her, but _this_! This was just too much. "Take the child off immediately, Isaribi. You can still—"

"If you take him off, I'll throw him in the water."

"Fujin… Neechan, I'm scared." Botan said.

"You need to go with the small mistress… I won't be able to take care of you any longer. I'm so sorry… But this is my one last wish that you do this… You need to take care of her…"

Neither Botan nor Sakura argued with Isaribi anymore. _Last wish?_ The girl thought she was going to _die_?

It was at that moment that Isaribi pushed off the boat, but neither she nor Sakura were willing to see the children go. They didn't have the hearts to say goodbye. And so, the women followed the boat into the river as far as they could go. They only stopped when the water reached below their stomachs. But they continued to watch the as it sailed off, as the boat became smaller and smaller.

But once the boat was only a few yards away from the horizon, it was then that Shion's unique cry resounded throughout the forest, surprising everyone there—Sakura the most.

"Shion…! _Shion_!" the rosette cried, realizing that the baby would not die so easily. Why did her sister need to suffer so? "Shion… I couldn't save you, so do as your name says and live by your own strength! My sister… My poor baby sister…" She could only pray that, by some miracle, her sister could be saved.

On the boat, Botan stopped his small tears and stopped looking back. There was no use in doing so when he was already so far away from them. Instead, he walked over to Shion, carrying her in his arms. He was careful of the small blade protruding out of her chest.

"Don't cry, little master… Don't cry…" he said. "It'll be alright… It'll be alright… I'm here… I'm here…" But he too began crying again. He did not know how they would survive, but he would make sure they would . . . for Sakura's sake.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

The boat was so far away now that the thin mist could hide it. Isaribi gave up on seeing the children off and had Karin help her back to the shore. Now she turned to Sakura, watching the girl's back.

_Fujin… _she thought. She felt so tired, so sleepy. _Konan-fujin…Forgive me for not being able to keep my promise… I couldn't save your daughters from such a terrible fate… I'm so sorry… _And without even seeing the sun rise, the girl's eyes closed, and her body went limp.

"Isaribi!" Karin yelled, getting everyone's attention.

Sakura's head whipped around. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Isaribi . . . she . . ." Karin was hesitant to continue. "She's stopped breathing!"

Sakura's heart fell then, her eyes widened with fear. "_Isaribi_!" She ran as quick as she could. Her mother's wet kimono (A/N: Remember? It's the kimono Konan gave her early in _Akatsuki no Kuruma_) dragged her down. It was so heavy with all that water, but she finally made it to Isaribi's side, kneeling down and turning the girl's face towards hers.

"Isaribi!" she cried again. "Isaribi, don't leave me! Please! Get up! Please get up… _Please_! Open your eyes! Isaribi! Isaribi… Please don't leave without me… Please wake up… I said wake up! Wake up! Wake up, _wake up_, WAKE UP!" Sakura rested her head on the girl's chest—there was no heartbeat. "Isaribi…" The tears continued as she held the dead girl's hand. "Why are like this? Why are you so cold…? Please… Don't leave like this… What am I going to do? What am I supposed to do now, _huh_? Please don't leave me… Please… Not like this…"

Karin couldn't help but let her tears fall. Meanwhile, Kisame and Zetsu just looked away. They couldn't take anymore of Sakura's cries.

✿｡.:***The Next Day***:.｡✿

"Oh, Father, _look_!" And the little girl reached into the boat, lifting the blanket.

"Daughter, get away from there!"

"But, Father, these two children…" the girl said, "They're still breathing… And this baby . . . it's got a dagger in her!"

"A dagger?" The shinobi walked over as his daughter began rummaging through the boat.

"_Oh_? There's a note that's fallen out of the boy's pocket…"

"A note? What does it say?"

The girl's eyes skimmed through the note. She gasped. "Father, isn't Haruno Sakura that friend of Hinata-oneesan's? The one that went missing?"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Hm, so we've gotten rid of the baby…" Kabuto stated, smiling. "Sakura hasn't even come out of her room once, let alone run amok again. She must be horrified, still. After all, her baby sister's just been sent to her death. So . . . what's your next move? The Kage's are having their meeting in a week. Perhaps—"

"That event is still a while away," Madara answered. "And moreover, I still got Amegakure to take care of. Zetsu!"

"_Yes_?" The plant-mutant phased into the room.

"Go relay this message to the shinobi of Amegakure. Ugatsu is to be the new leader."

"_What_?" Black Zetsu asked while White Zetsu said, "But he's one of Hanzo's followers! Pein had opposed him and his political party! The other nations were suspicious enough about Amegakure's involvement with Akatsuki! If you put Ugatsu as leader, a governmental change such as this is sure to cause the other nations to—"

"It doesn't matter," Madara just shrugged it off. "Akatsuki has no more ties with that village. Why should I care about what'll happen to it?"

"But Sakura—"

"Why would you worry about what _she_ thinks? In fact, why should _I_ worry about what she'd do?" Madara asked, infuriated by Zetsu's reluctance. "She's in inner turmoil now. She's probably lost her mind, her sanity, by now! There's nothing she can do but be like a docile doll and listen to what her superiors say!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Quaffing down the sake in just one gulp, Sakura rested her head on the table. To anyone who was watching, she just seemed lifeless, deprived of all emotions. But in actuality, she was playing back memories in her head and watching them over and over again.

_"Oh, come now, Sharky-sempai," Sakura said. "Botan's not _that_ bad."—she wiped the dripping porridge off of the boy's face with a moist towel—"He just needs to get used to living like this. After that, he can start learning some manners."_

_Kisame _hmp_ed and crossed his arms._

_"And if you ask me, between you and Botan, _you're_ the more childish."_

_Isaribi came into the room then, bowing her head to Sakura. "Fujin…"_

_"Enough of that, Isaribi," Sakura said. "You may serve and work for my family now, but that doesn't mean you need to treat me any differently or formally. We're still friends, and that comes first rather than position."_

_"I know," Isaribi said, a smile on her face, as she straightened herself. "It's just fun to see you so flustered."_

_Sakura scoffed at the girl's antics, laughing a bit in the process. "You really haven't changed. You still like to tease me so…"_

_"I daren't do so," Isaribi said, bowing her head again. "I came to bring you good news. The baby seems healthy, and so does your mother. They are both fine, and your mother has not shown any signs of a pre-mature pregnancy yet."_

_"_Really_? That's good to hear…" Sakura had been a bit worried. _

_Kisame huffed. "I don't see what the big deal is. You can easily see that, Pinkie. Why did we have to hire some girl? I don't why we did that."_

_Sakura grimaced at Kisame before turning back to Isaribi and giving the girl a smile and a light squeeze on her hands. "Isaribi, you'll have your work cut out for you, but I have faith that you'll do a good job. But if anyone bullies you, you have to tell me right away, okay? A few of the Akatsuki members"—her eyes shifted to Kisame—"have not taken a liking to you yet. You must tell me if anyone bullies you. I'll stand up for you."_

_"My deepest gratitude for the advice, Fujin."_

_Sakura almost rolled her eyes at Isaribi's formality._

_"But what if _you_ bully me, Fujin?" the girl asked. "What will you do? Will you stand up for me? Will you punish yourself?"_

_Sakura tsked. "Again you tease me?"_

_And the two girls broke out into giggles._

_Kisame quickly threw his hands over his ears. "I'll _never_ have a day of quiet anymore…" he said to himself before glancing at Botan. "I'm just glad you're not another annoying, giggling girl."_

_Botan gave him a toothy smile._

_"Eh, don't get me wrong, kid. I still don't like you."_

_But Botan didn't listen to that. He just walked over to Isaribi, tugging on her dress. "Neechan…" he said, his voice still quiet since he had never talked much. "What's an _'another annoying, giggling girl'_?"_

_"What?" Isaribi asked, eyes wide at Botan's new vocabulary. "Where did you hear that?"_

_He pointed at Kisame. "Sharky-sempai."_

_"Oh-ho! So you think I'm annoying, don't you?" Sakura asked, hands on her hips._

_"_No_!" Kisame feigned his distress. "You're just _pink_!"_

_"_WHAT_? Why, I'd oughta—"_

_"Sakura, how many times have I told you to watch your temper?"_

_"_Weasel-kun_~!" Sakura smiled, an idea popping into her head. She ran to him, faking tears. "Weasel-kun, Sharky-sempai is being mean to me!"_

_"_WHAT_?" Kisame roared. "Why, you little—"_

_Itachi patted the girl's head. "Now, now, you're under Kisame's tutelage. You must suck up anything that he throws at you, no matter how mean it may sound."_

_"Okay, Weasel-kun… I'll _try_…"_

_Isaribi giggled at the exchange. "Wow… Even criminals treat you like a princess, Fujin."_

_"Isaribi! Stop calling me that!" Sakura was ready to turn red._

_But Isaribi seemed to have not heard that. "Botan, don't you think we should call her _'Hime'_ then?"_

_"Don't you _dare_!" Sakura exclaimed, a bit of pink on her face._

_"Hey, that's a good idea!" Kisame replied. "Pinkie-hime! I like the sound of that!"_

_"_SHARKY-SEMPAI_! Weasel-kun, do something!"_

_"I think _'Hime'_ is also appropriate."_

_"WEASEL-_KUN_!"_

_"Then it's settled! We'll call Fujin _'Hime'_ from now on."_

_"Isaribi, stop teasing me!"_

_"Hai, Fujin."_

_"Isaribi, for _real_! I'm getting angry!"_

_Isaribi bowed lower than ever before. "My deepest apologies, Fujin. I've made you angry. Please punish me."_

_"_ISARIBI_!"_

"Why did you leave, Isaribi?" Sakura asked, her harsh voice barely above that of a whisper. "I can still remember… When Naruto brought you to Konoha… Your appearance then… You went through so much… And then when you came to Akatsuki as my mother's midwife… The memories are still in my thoughts… It's still so vivid… You helped me through so much… But you still have to keep your promise to me… You still have to stay by my side until this is all over! So how could you . . . how could you leave me with such a peaceful look on your face?" She was screaming now, and she threw her the bottle of sake at the wall. It shattered with a loud noise. "_How_…? How could you leave so early?"

She fell to her knees, burying her head in her hands. She wept for a small period, but then . . . she stopped.

"Itachi, you bastard… Of all things to do, you left me here, _knowing_ of the danger I'd be in… And yet, you were so _worried_ about my family problems…" She chuckled warily at that before her head whipped around, her eyes landed on the picture of her mother and father she had hung on the wall. She smiled cruelly, taking her sake cup in hand and hoisted it up almost as a toast. And then she chucked that at the picture.

"Are you two _happy_ now?" Sakura asked, half screaming, half crying. "How could you two leave me here like this, _huh_? You _knew_ I'd be unable to protect Shion… You knew, and yet . . . how could you let me suffer from such a heartache? My heart still hurts… It's been heated until the point of boiling! I couldn't protect my sister—my baby _sister_! I let her _die_! I couldn't save her… I couldn't save her…"

As she fell to her knees, she covered her mouth so that no one could hear her shrieking wails. "How could you… HOW COULD YOU…?" She lifted her head to glare at the picture again. Her hand which covered her mouth fell back to her side. "You two are just probably fucking around with me! You two are just waiting for me to die! _Fine_! I'll die! I'll die so stop torturing me!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"What? She's _still_ not coming out?"

Juugo just shook his head as Karin tried to turn the knob again and again to no avail. The door was bolted shut as it had been for the last couple of days. In frustration, Karin just pounded on the door. But when that didn't work, the redhead just slid down against the door.

"She hasn't eaten in two _days_ already," she added, her voice coarse from two days of pleading with the kunoichi. "She's refusing to see anyone too… I worry of her health, both physical and mental…"

"I really wonder what that Madara is planning to do…" Suigetsu said. "It's hard enough to deal with Sakura when she's _sane_. But when she's blinded by rage,"—he shuddered at the thought—"I think I'd prefer a revenge-crazy Sasuke than _that_!"

"But Sakura's incapable of holding back any more of those types of emotions," Juugo argued. "If this keeps up…"

"_Shh_!" Karin suddenly hushed both of them, her ear pressed against the door as she stood. It was too quiet, just too quiet. Before, Sakura had been yelling. Now…

"Sakura!" the redhead yelled. "Sakura, open the door this instant! Don't you dare do anything stupid! _Sakura_!"

Sensing the girl's distress and her reason, Suigetsu readied his sword. "Here, get out of the way, Karin!" He pushed the girl away as he struck the door with his sword. Needless to say, the door lost to that battle, and Karin rushed into the room.

The sight she was met with wasn't pretty.

"Ahh! _Sakura_!" And she hurried to the girl. Suigetsu and Juugo followed suit. Juugo himself was enough to lift Sakura off of the ligature, but it took all three of them to stop the girl from hurting herself any further as they brought her to her bed.

"Let me go! _Let me go_!" Sakura's arms and legs flailed around. "LET ME GO!"

Unable to take the girl's monstrous punches, the three threw her onto her bed.

"Sakura, why would you _do_ that?" Karin asked. "Why would you try and hang yourself?"

The rosette just cried. "It's better if I die! I can't go on living like this anymore! I really can't! Just leave me and let me _die_!"

She tried to grab Suigetsu's sword, but luckily the swordsman moved back and out of her reach.

"Sakura-san, death will solve _nothing_!" Juugo pleaded with the distraught kunoichi.

"Won't it?" Sakura asked. "All of my suffering… It'll all end with my death! I'm not scared of going to Hell! I'm scared of living like this! I won't go on living like this! I just can't!"

"Go get Sasuke," Suigetsu told Karin. "Perhaps maybe he can—"

"_Sasuke_?" Sakura laughed. "Why in the world would you think getting him here would even _help_ my situation?" she asked, that cruel smile on her face. "Yes, he was my teammate… But does he act it _now_? He'd be jumping for joy when he hears of my death!"

"Sakura, _please_!" Karin begged. "Sasuke does care!"

"_Ha_! Sasuke _cares_…? As if! He said that he wanted to protect his precious people, that he wouldn't let us die… But did he do that? No, he's just like Madara! Well, I had enough of them! To the Hell with _both_ of them!"

"Well, then…" Karin tried to think of something to reason to Sakura with. "Then what about Isaribi? Surely, you're not going to let her death go to waste, are you? She wouldn't want to see you kill yourself."

"So . . . you're saying she wants to see me live a life _worse_ than death?"

"_No_! That's not it!" Karin mentally cursed. Plan A so didn't go as planned. "Then . . . then what of your parents? They—"

"They _what_? They _left_ me here! All by myself! And yet…" By now, it was hard to tell if Sakura was either laughing or crying. She fell onto her stomach, burying her head in her pillows. "I miss them so much! I want to see them again, I want to go to them! I miss them so much…"

"_Sakura_…"

Her head snapped back up to glare at the three in her room. "What are you three doing here? Are you spies working for Madara?"

"Sakura, _please_…" Karin tried again.

"_LEAVE_! GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" the Haruno screamed. She threw her pillows at them. "Get out, _get out_, GET OUT!"

"What's going on?" Kisame asked as he ran into the room. He had been passing by, wanting to make sure Sakura was alright, but when he heard her screaming…

"Sakura-san tried to hang herself," Juugo answered.

"_What_?" the blue-skinned man turned to the kunoichi. His heart almost stopped when he heard that. How could that have almost happened? how could she try and kill herself?

"Sharky-sempai, make them leave!" the kunoichi cried. "Get them out of my room!"

"Okay, okay, just . . . just calm down," he said. "I'll get them to leave."

"You, too…"

Kisame was shocked into silence by her cruel tone of voice, but, in the end, he agreed for her sake. "Alright, alright. We'll leave. We'll leave." And he motioned for the three to follow him out the door.

"But—" Karin wanted to protest, but Suigetsu just placed his hand on her shoulder, telling her that it would do no good to argue with the situation like this.

Once out of the room and a little ways down the hall, Karin spoke. "What if she does something foolish again? What if she—"

"Just give her the time she needs to sort things out," Kisame suggested. "A lot has happened in the past week… She has a lot to think about. We shouldn't force her to rush things especially since she isn't well right now."

Karin just stayed quiet. She very well knew the consequences if she crowded over the kunoichi too much, but she still worried. It had only been two days since Sakura had lost all three of her allies—her sister and her friends—but Karin knew that, at the very least, Sakura should be past this stage of mourning and should be closer to coming to terms with it rather than trying to kill herself. People were different and had different ways of dealing with pain, but Sakura shouldn't have been taking this long especially since she herself was a kunoichi. If this were to keep up, Karin knew that Sakura's mental health would have taken a great toll.

"So now what?" Suigetsu asked. "Wait for Pinkie to accept reality?"

But Karin didn't stick around long enough to hear the conversation as she stalked off into the hallway. After all, desperate times called for desperate measures. And desperate measures for Sakura meant the ex-teammate who left her on the freakin' bench.

* * *

**Okay, so this chapter is done! Yay! There's just two more chapters! So if I were you, I wouldn't miss out! So please stay tuned for the last two!**

**Also, please read my new SasuSaku oneshot, _HANA KAGARI_, and my NaruHina threeshot, _STAIRS TO HEAVEN_.**


	6. 6th Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

* * *

**Yay! I got the chapter up! I actually planned for this chapter to come out later, but I decided to put it up. I wanted to work on my other fanfictions, but I continued to work on this since it's one of my best ones (and cuz I just couldn't stay away). And so, yeah, here's the chapter, and heads up: the next chapter will be the _last_ in this story. Then it'll be time for the third installment. Thank you and please enjoy!**

* * *

_If we are to not be lost,_

_Let's be like the bird, flying towards the sky_

_If we are to be strong,_

_Let's be like that flower, waiting for spring…_

* * *

~The Sixth Frame~

Sakura laid on her bed, staring at the wall. How much time had passed since she scared everyone out of her room? One minute? Five minutes? Maybe twenty? Perhaps an hour already? She was losing her mind, she realized just then. She was so frustrated that she didn't even have the will to move her body. She just . . . she didn't know what she wanted. She just . . . she just needed to think.

She took a deep breath but, before her thought process could begin, she heard the door creak open.

"Whoever it is, _leave_," she said, her voice exalted with monotonous anger.

She heard the door close, but she could still feel that ominous presence in the room.

She lifted her head, turning to the person who stood in her room. "I said, _leav_—" Her eyes almost widened at the man. She had no idea why he'd even be _near_ her, let alone speak with her. "Kabuto…" It came out as a snarl.

The mutated man smirked. "It seems you still haven't forgiven me for stabbing an arrow at your back, Princess of the Akatsuki."

"Bastard…" Her hands rolled into fists, clutching her bed sheets. The man had no idea how _close_ he was to being without a head. "Why are you _here_? What do you want with me?"

Kabuto smiled wickedly, showing his teeth this time. "There's no need to bare your fangs at me. I only came to speak with you."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Sasuke rubbed his forehead. Really, what happened to the good old days, huh? What happened to the days when Karin wouldn't _dare_ talk back to him, yell at him, punch him, or do all of those things at once to just hurt him? He really missed those days when she'd latch onto his arms and follow his command like a little lost puppy dog.

. . . . . . .

. . . . . . .

. . . . . . .

Actually, no, wait, he didn't _really_ miss those days. In fact, he just wanted to _kill_ the girl. Why? For one simple reason: she was _annoying_, not Sakura-annoying but _Karin_-annoying, and _that_ was really bad.

"Madara isn't to be trusted!" she continued on with her rant, finally not trying to punch him or yell at him. "He _wanted_ her to go insane. He wanted her to go _mad_! It's all part of his plan!"

"And what does this have to do with me?" Sasuke honestly saw no point in this, other than Karin trying to make him feel bad for his ex-teammate.

"_Arrogant bastard_! Just _listen_, for once!" Karin was exhausted, cranky, and horribly easy to irritate now. (Not that she wasn't before. It's just that now she was like an erupting volcano, calm one second then spitting out fire in the next.) She just wanted him to see her goddamn point (and to somehow stop Sakura from trying to do reckless things). "Uchiha Madara _lied_ to her, his own _goddaughter_! Who knows if he lied to you, too? Heck, maybe he even put some kind of mind-control jutsu on the elders or your family to make his story a heck of a Hell more believable! In all, we should be keeping an eye on _him_! And we should be trying to _prevent_ Sakura, who knows _most_ about him, more than we do, from losing her mind!"

And while she spoke—or rather, _screamed_—Sasuke just half-listened to her. The other half of his mind was reeling in memories. Sakura had been annoying, as stated many times before, and Sasuke didn't really see the reason as to why to keep her sane or to even keep her _alive_. But then again, he didn't want to see her dead either. For some reason, he couldn't stomach the idea of seeing her corpse, drained of life and color—he couldn't even stomach the idea of her being _hurt_. Was it because he knew, even though he had been a jerk, that she had loved him with all of her heart once? Or was it because she had been his teammate?

"Even if I know all that, why should I help her?" he asked not only Karin this but himself too.

"Because you _owe_ her that much!" Karin's answer was simple, and it made more reason to Sasuke than anything else. "You know, she told me… You once said that you didn't want to see anymore of your precious people die… Well, doesn't _she_ count as one of your _'precious people'_? Doesn't it count as her _death_ if you let her go crazy?"

He had no comeback to her words. Though Sakura would still be Sakura if she were insane, her mind wouldn't be. She wouldn't _be_ the same. In fact, would she even be Sakura at all? Somehow, that didn't sit right with him.

"She was your _teammate_ once! Is the situation really _that_ different? What has changed? Isn't she the _same girl _you knew?"

And again, Karin's words hit him like a hurricane. Was the situation different than it was before? When he had been with Orochimaru, of course, he had to fight against Naruto and her to protect them both, to keep them safe from who knew what or who the Sanin or Itachi could send after them. And his planned work. They both remained safe as he slowly grew more powerful. Orochimaru was now dead, and so was his brother (regretfully). Konoha was the only real enmity now. Sasuke doubted Sakura would go against the village that had raised her. However, he also knew she must have bared _some_ hostility towards the village that had been the cause of her father's death. But was she the same girl? When she had been his teammate, she had been weak and annoying. To put it in blunt words, she was a nuisance and a crybaby. She couldn't put up a decent fight nor could she defend herself. But now… _Now_ she was a strong and confident woman who could hold her own against opponents much stronger than herself. She had proved that when she fought against him.

So, really, what was the problem? Why wouldn't he help her like he did back in their days as Team 7? The answer came out of his mouth before his thoughts even put it together.

"No… It's _not_ the same. _She's_ not the same…" he said, a bittersweet tone in his voice. "She's . . . different."

And for some unknown reason, that didn't appeal to him as much as he'd liked. That weak and annoying fan-girl had somehow grown on him and, he realized, he _missed_ her. Perhaps he was just waiting for her to get stuck in a corner like she had done many times before, and he would just become her knight in shining armor again, saving her like he did in their genin days.

Karin, on the other hand—when she heard his answer, she just gave a small smile which confused the Uchiha. Did she realize what his actions meant? Did she see his meaning behind them?

"How is she different?"

Apparently, _not_.

"She still _needs_ help—_your_ help. Even if she won't admit it, even if she screams and cries bloody murder, she wants it as much as she needs it. I know you don't talk about the people in your home village or about your days with your genin team, and I know you try to avoid the subject as much as you can, but I can _see_ that you still care for her. There's no excuse for when you went easy on her in your battle or when you comforted her against Madara's orders to have Shion killed. Face it. Your feelings for her are probably as strong as her feelings for you."

His eyes widened just a tiny bit, but Karin saw that too.

"Yes," she let out a wry chuckle. "I can see that you like her. And I can see that her feelings for you are still ablaze. Though she denies it as much as she wants, even if she wants you _dead_, she can't hide it. You know it, too. Though you're a cold-hearted jerk and bastard, she can't help but still _love_ you. So . . . can't you at least give her something so that she can be proud of her love? Give her something so that she can accept it?"

When he didn't answer, Karin used her last resort. "Well then, if not for her and if not for me then . . . do it for your _brother_! She was _his_ student, after all. You . . ."—she could only hope that she wouldn't get killed for speaking like this—"you killed her teacher. It's the least you could do…"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"What's the use of feeling so sad?" Kabuto asked in a sickly sweet voice. "It's already too late. Your parents are gone, and so is your sister. Is there a point to being so sad now? Why not take matters into your own hands?"

Sakura kept her gaze low, her alert high. Her glare stayed on this dangerous criminal. Like with Madara, she knew her life was just putty in his hands. "What are you saying?"

"Why bare an enmity towards _me_?" the silver-haired ninja inquired. "Madara was the one who your hatred should be targeted towards. _He_ was the one who planned out both your mother and father's deaths and Shion's too. Shouldn't _he_ be the one you want to take down?"

"You think I _don't_?" Sakura scoffed, eyeing the boy strictly. She couldn't figure out his plan. Just exactly what would he gain? "Trust me, he's the _last_ person I want alive. But what can _I_ do? He has so many powerful people around him. How can I touch him?"

"_Powerful people_?" He pretended as if he didn't know what she meant. "Ah, you mean your ex-teammate. Am I correct?"

She didn't answer. "I'll ask again: _why_ are you here? What do you want with me?"

"An alliance," was his answer. "I came to Akatsuki to get stronger, and I have plans, but those plans are on hold now because of Madara. I'll gladly help you take him down if you swear your allegiance to me."

"What makes you think I will?" Sakura sneered. "_You're_ the one who shot an arrow at me!"

He ignored her last comment. "Because you needn't live this kind of life anymore. You needn't suffer like this."

Her glare lessened ever so, but her eyes stayed narrowed.

He smirked. "Why must you suffer so? Why must you live like this? You could go back to living peacefully, just like you did before you came to Akatsuki." He took slow, cautious steps until he was right in front of the girl. He caressed her cheek, but she slapped his hand away. He ignored the action. "You don't have to be caught up in all of these criminal activities. You can just go back to village life. In fact, you might not even _need_ to be a kunoichi anymore. You can just be a regular civilian just like your mother wanted."

Sakura just stayed quiet. His offer was almost too good to refuse. She needed all the help she could get if she wanted to take down Madara, but could she trust Kabuto? He, who had worked for the Snake Sannin, could prove to be a horrific enemy, but could he make for a terrific ally?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"I'm going, too!"

"But, Ino—"

"No buts, Hinata!" the blonde said. "Sakura's my _best friend_! I _have_ to go and beg for her!" She couldn't believe what was happening. "They can't put her in the Bingo Book! She hasn't done _anything_ wrong! Hell, no one has even _heard_ from her in months! They can't tarnish her reputation simply because they don't have a lead as to where she is!"

"It's troublesome, but I agree with Ino." Shikamaru explained. "Sakura and Sasuke aren't just your problem anymore, Naruto. They both stem from our generation. As such, we all have to take responsibility."

"But—"

"We're not saying we agree with Danzo's decision of branding Sakura as a criminal," Tenten said.

"But Sasuke's time is up." Neji added. "We're been lenient enough, but now the situation has changed and for the worst. After this last chase, you have to _give up _on the idea of bringing him back. If not then _we'll_ take matters in our own hands." He put a hand onto Naruto's shoulder. "Gomennasai, Naruto," he said. "But it's time to face the facts. Sasuke's a dangerous criminal. He _needs_ to be taken care of."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

When Karin came into the room, she saw Sakura tying her rosette locks into a ponytail, her kunoichi's outfit on. Her eyes widened. "Sa . . . _Sakura_! What…? What are you planning to do?"

But the kunoichi didn't answer. "Give me my Viper," she commanded.

"Wha . . . _what_?"

"Give me my Viper, Karin," she said again, this time in a sharper tone.

"_SAKURA_!" the redhead pleaded. She just knew the girl was doing something foolish again. And if she was correct, Sakura might even end up dead.

"Have you gone _deaf_?" Sakura almost yelled. "I told you to give me my Viper!"

"Sakura! _Please_!"

But Sakura just glared at her, angry at her insubordination, before moving to get her weapon herself.

"Sakura!" Karin pleaded once more, grabbing onto the girl's arm. "_Please_, don't do this!"

But the rosette shoved off the girl's hand, the sharp tip of her Viper now against Karin's neck.

"Fine…" Karin said, taking a deep breath. "Cut off my head if it'll calm you down."

Sakura scoffed, smirking. "Alright, as you wish." She swung her Viper, the chain wrapping tightly around Karin's neck. "I'll kill _anyone_ who stands in my way."

But it was at that moment the door opened. Sakura's eyes widened at her ex-teammate's sudden entrance. Likewise, it was safe to say Sasuke was surprised at the scene before him. Why would Sakura even _think_ of killing her only ally?

Seeing his shocked gaze, Sakura released her hold on Karin who fell to the floor. She glared at the boy, before walking away going to the other side of her room.

Karin rubbed her aching neck. Was Sakura really so distressed that she wouldn't even _listen_ to reason anymore?

"Karin, leave."

Her eyes grew wide as she looked up at the Uchiha. "What…?"

"I don't want to repeat myself. Leave."

She nodded her head once. She glanced at Sakura who had opened a secret passageway before she stood up and left the room. She really hoped the Uchiha could get through to Sakura. If not then she really did fear for the Haruno's future.

Once she was gone, Sasuke followed the cherry blossom through her secret hallway. He followed her all the way into a secret room where he saw Sakura place a box full of weapons on the table. He realized her motive once she took out a bottle of poison.

"I've endured all that I possibly can," she said before he even asked his question, drowning the weapons with her strongest of poisons. "I've held myself back countless of times before… And I've held myself back from killing that bastard for making me this way to please Isaribi… I've been patient enough."

Sasuke allowed his eyes to widen only just slightly.

"It doesn't matter what happens to Akatsuki…" she said, as if she sensed his alarm.

He stayed silent. But as Sakura reached for one of the weapons, he grabbed her arm, forcing her to look at him."I'm not worried about the group that has forsaken you," he told her.

Sakura stared at him, unable to see where this was going.

"But if you walk out that door, you will _die_ either by Madara's hands or—"

"Or _yours_?" the kunoichi scoffed, shaking his hand off of her arm. She faced away from him, glancing at the weapons again. "I'm not afraid of death. I'm only afraid of this _life_ and what it'll bring if I stay alive any longer while living like this."

"Sakura."

"I'm already a ghost, a ghost that'll follow her family to the grave. A living person shouldn't be this lonely… I'm not afraid of death," she repeated, and she turned to glare at Sasuke. "Especially not when both you and Naruto have already killed my heart and taken everything away from me."

It was silence once more as the pinkette grabbed the weapons, putting them into her pouch. And she walked away.

"You're even weaker than you were before," he said once she was at the door.

"_What_?" Her head whipped around, the anger evident in her eyes.

"You've become so weak that you can't even handle living anymore."

She laughed. "Once one loses hope, there _is_ no reason to go on living."

". . . You're so annoying. There's no use reasoning with you anymore."

Sakura turned her body fully around, facing her ex-teammate with a look of mock. "Hmp, if I'm _so annoying _then why don't you kill me?"

"You think I _won't_?"

Sakura scoffed once more. She then walked right in front of him. She unsheathed his sword and placed it in his hand, moving the sword until it drew blood on her neck.

"Then do it," she insisted. "Better you than Madara."

The Uchiha watched her, waiting for any signs of hesitation, but there were none. And so, he raised his sword. And Sakura closed her eyes, waiting for the outcome she knew would come. But the outcome she wanted didn't come. Instead, when she opened her eyes, she realized that her hair was no longer in a ponytail and was no longer down to her waist. She stared at the floor, now covered in her pink hair.

Her eyes shortly shifted back to her ex-teammate, trying to hide her confusion. "What? You don't have the guts to kill me?"

"What's the use of killing someone who's already dead?" he asked, and his free hand moved to stroke her cheek, but she turned away.

Sasuke almost smirked at that and settled with her hair. "I've always liked this look on you. Short hair suits you better than long hair does."

A disconcerting thing (well, in the kunoichi's opinion) happened then. Sakura almost blushed. She hadn't done that since—_what_?—since her father and mother's departure? And her heartbeat rapidly increased. The rosette couldn't believe that these old feelings could surface again.

"Mama said so, too…" she replied, trying to hide her emotions. But she used the wrong subject. Almost immediately, her tears flowered down her face the minute she remembered her mother.

Sighing, Sasuke dropped his sword, bringing the girl into an embrace and letting her cry against his chest.

"_Why_…?" she asked, her voice scarcely a whisper. She looked up at his face, her tears pausing for just a second. "Why are you doing this? To lead me into a false sense of security? You, Naruto, and Madara took away my family… What more can you take away from me…?"

He didn't answer as she resumed her weeping, burying her face in his chest.

"I miss them so much…" she cried. "I don't understand why I had to be left alone here… I couldn't even protect my baby sister… I left her to die… I couldn't even save _her_… Now even Isaribi's left me… I don't want to be alone… I don't want to be by myself, Sasuke-kun…"

The Uchiha tightened his grip on the shaking girl, stroking her hair. "You don't have to be…" he said. "I'm here. I'll _always_ be here for you."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Shizune sighed. "Tsunade-sama," she spoke to the lady again today, hoping that something she said would wake her up. "I do wish you'd stop sleeping now. Things are hectic around here. There's no more paperwork though, mind you, but _Danzo's_ Hokage now! He's putting both Sasuke and Sakura's names into the Bingo Book! War could break out, and . . . oh, Tsunade-sama, things aren't what they used to be. Please… Wake up…"

"Yes, please do, Tsunade-sama."

Eyes widening, Shizune turned to the door. "Oh, Kurenai! You scared me there!"

The ebony-haired woman smiled apologetically. "Gomen ne, I didn't mean to frighten you, but the door was opened."

"Oh, that's okay… What are you doing here, though?"

The pregnant woman moved next to her and sat down. She bowed her head to the sleeping Hokage. "Tsunade-sama, I'm here to bring you the latest news. Konoha 11 and their sensei have decided to set out to the Kage summit. Afterwards, they will set out on their last attempt to capture and find Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura."

Shizune's eyes widened. "One _last_…?" She couldn't believe her ears. "And . . . and Naruto _agreed_ to that?"

Kurenai nodded her head. "They all came to the decision that _they_ shall be the ones to solve their generation's problems, even if it means having to kill Sasuke and giving up on Sakura's search."

Shizune wanted to speak, but she found no words to express her feelings. Though she had nothing of a bond with the Uchiha, Sakura had almost been like a younger sister to her. To give up on the search would be the same as branding her a missing-nin or even dead! The medical nin put her hand to her mouth, trying to quiet her cries. She couldn't believe this! She felt as though she had failed her junior, as though she had done nothing significant. She couldn't believe this was happening.

And as Kurenai comforted the crying woman, she prayed. And it wasn't just for everyone's wellbeing but also for the future her baby was going to be living in.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"The boy who'll become Amegakure's new leader… Bring him out."

Stepping out of the small crowd, the old man held his hands out in front of him, shaking them as if he did not understand the girl's words. "No… He isn't here…" His voice shook with fear.

But the girl saw through his lies. Her hand immediately lurched to her hidden weapon, and her weapon's signature hisses sounded through the air as it hit every shinobi within the woman's line of vision. The shinobi all fell to the ground with either one of their arms, legs, or ribs broken.

"Every man under Heaven is a liar…" she snarled, giving one last crack of her whip. She glanced at the only person standing still standing, the only other woman in the room. "I hope you are smarter than these idiots."

The old lady could only shake with fear as she nodded her head, not wanting to anger the attacker.

The pink-haired woman smiled, turning her face away. "You are to produce Ugatsu," she said as she combed back her hair. "He is to come out and face me, by order of the daughter"—the Rinnegan in her eyes—"of God."

* * *

**Gomen ne = sorry**

**Gomennasai = I'm sorry**

**Yes! The chapter is done! And so . . . yeah, the next chapter will be the last chapter of this fanfic, but it's not coming out that quickly, okay? I still have to get it ready for the third installment and all that junk. Thank you and please stayed tune for the last chapter of _Toki no Sabaku_!**

**Oh, and peoples, do any of you know what the Rinnegan's power is? Besides from controlling other bodies, that is…**


	7. 7th Frame

-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

* * *

**Yay! Finally! I got the last chapter of this fanfic up! I'm so happy! I'm sorry that it took a while, but I had to update a couple of my other fanfics. Plus, with Easter having come up, I had to do a lot of planning and stuff with school projects and my Japanese and Chinese classes. It was just hard to keep up with everything! So, yeah, like I said before, this is the last chapter of _Toki no Sabaku_! So please enjoy!**

* * *

_As the crying sounded,_

_The scattering tears passed…_

_Were all that just wetting the desert of time?_

_Right now…_

* * *

~The Seventh Frame~

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S _MISSING_?"

Kisame didn't even try to resist his urge to wince at those loud and irate words. Of course, even if he didn't wince, he'd still have a little tiny problem with his hearing now that Madara almost yelled—well, actually, _shrieked_—in his ear.

"It's as we said," the white half of Zetsu said. The two different sides kept switching off as they explained the situation. "The girl is missing. Her cohort is still within the hideout, but even _she_ doesn't know where Sakura has gone. One minute she was sleeping soundly, and then she was gone."

"_Sleeping soundly_?" Madara asked, horribly skeptical. "She was just trying to _kill_ herself the other day! How in the world does she _sleep soundly_?"

Zetsu looked to Kisame for an answer, he himself unsure.

Kisame sighed but, nevertheless, he was the one who answered. "Eh, girls and their mood swings… Either that or it was just her time of the month."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"_Eh_? She's _missing_?"

Suigetsu only nodded his head. "That's the word from down the hall. With _that_ loud of a scream, the whole _world_ must have heard Madara by now."

"But she . . . she was trying to hang herself just yesterday," the tall man pointed out. "How in the world did she go from killing herself to running away again?"

"Well, if we all turned our heads to the one who comforted her last night…" Suigetsu suggested, pointing to said boy. "After all, he _did_ leave his village. He probably rubbed off on her, and now she's on a quest of revenge."

But Sasuke just _hn_ed and ignored them, leaving the room.

"Karin, do you _really_ not know where she is?" Juugo asked.

The girl gave an exasperated sigh. "Yes," she said, a bit annoyed. "For the hundredth time, I do _not_—know—where—she—is!" Though she was really the only one Sakura trusted now within this whole organization, when she said she didn't know, she really meant it.

"Well, you left her alone with Sasuke…" Suigetsu said, almost in a thoughtful way. "Maybe after he ravished her, he killed her and went and buried her in the forest!"

In the next second, he had a large bump popping out of his head and a new black eye.

"If you make a comment like that again, you had _better_ start running!" the redhead threatened before walking out of the door.

Juugo, on the other hand, could only shake his head at his friend's idiocy. He really hoped it wasn't contagious.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Sasuke was almost home free. (A/N: And by "home free," I mean "room free.") His room was just down the hallway. Now all he had to do was get there before anyone could disturb him e.g. Madara, Kisame, Zetsu, Suigetsu…

"Hey, Sasuke-kun!"

…or _her_.

He almost rolled his eyes and wondered if he should just ignore her. It didn't take long for his to come to such a decision and continued walking as if he never heard her, but…

"Uchiha Sasuke! Hey! Are you even _listening_ to me?"

Crap, she just got _louder_ and _louder_ as she came along.

He stopped in his tracks, his room just a few feet away, but he didn't turn to meet the girl's gaze. "What?" he asked monotonous.

"About last night…"

Sasuke mentally groaned. Here comes the attack of the one-hundred questions…

"I want to thank you for comforting Sakura."

Well now, that was surprising. The Uchiha had already opened his mouth ready to dismiss a whole bunch of questions, but what he had _not_ expected was a "thank-you." He looked back at the girl who stood at the end of the hall he came from. She had bowed to him.

"Che, there's no need to thank me," he said, continuing the short walk to his room. "I did what I did not because you asked me to." When he reached his door, he was intent on going in. But he paused for a moment when his hand touched the door knob. He knew he was going to regret this but, nevertheless, he asked, "What else?"

"Oh, _what_?"

"_What else_ did you want to say to me?" the Uchiha asked. "If that was it then you'd have left by now."

Karin wasn't surprised he realized that. He always had a knack for doing that. "You spent the whole night with her," she stated.

"What of it?" There was a small hint of anger in his voice. After all, who wouldn't be angry if someone made what you did sound so . . . so _immoral_?

Karin bit her bottom lip. That was not what she wanted to say. She had blurted it out by accident. "What I meant was," she started again, "How did you—"

"She was my teammate. Of course, I'd know what to do."

She nodded, understanding that he was not going to give her specific details. "And another thing… The envelope I gave you… Is it—"

"Safely in her hands."

And with that, he walked into his room, shutting the door and leaving Karin with her mouth gaping open. She soon regained her composure, however, and smiled. She had not known if what she had done—calling in the Uchiha—was the correct decision, but life seemed to be better for the cherry blossom now. That little fact would reassure Karin for a while. But that was not the only reason why she smiled.

It would seem that some bonds weren't broken, after all.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

The Uchiha laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling. The reason he wanted to be in his own room was because he didn't want to be disturbed at the moment. He had _a lot_ to think about.

_"She was my teammate. Of course, I'd know what to do."_

He may have said that with ease but, in actuality, he had no idea what he needed to do. In fact, everything he did and said last night had really been on impulse. He had let his guard down but not willingly and knowingly. How did that happen? It was because of _her_. It was _always_ because of her. _Her_. Haruno Sakura. The Uchiha had no idea why she had that effect on him—she just _did_—and she wondered why he called her annoying.

He groaned, rolling to his side. Oh, well… There was no use in thinking about it now. After all, the promise they made bound them together, and he doubted Sakura would let him go so easily if he backed out of it now. Heck, he wouldn't be surprised if a chakra-infused fist came his way if he ever betrayed her again.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Naruto really wanted to punch something right now. He _really_ wanted to punch something. Hm, perhaps this was how Sakura had always felt whenever he managed to do something extremely stupid. But _really_! Her anger probably wouldn't even come _close_ to his frustration right now! It was just— It was all really so— _Ugh_! He couldn't even find the correct word to describe it!

"Naruto-kun, please… Calm down… They're all just worried, not just for themselves but for everyone else…"

Naruto took a deep breath, his fists ceased their shaking but his heart didn't stop its aching pain. "I know that, Hinata… I know that… I really do…" he said. "But still . . . I wished they trusted me more."

"Oh, Naruto, this isn't because they don't trust you."

"_Really_? Then what _is_ it about, Hinata?" he asked, his voice rose. "Because I would really like to know!"

The Hyuga heiress was taken back a bit, but she firmly stood her ground. She knew Naruto didn't mean to yell at her. He was just that distressed right now.

"It's because they're our _friends_!" she said in a voice that matched Naruto's. "It's because they want to _help_ us! It's because they don't want to see you go through with this alone . . . just like me…"

The Kyuubi-boy's eyes softened, and he looked away. ". . . Gomennasai, Hinata-chan," he apologized, ashamed at himself. "I didn't mean to yell at you like that… I'm just . . . just so frustrated… Not just with everyone but with the whole situation… And at myself… How could I have let things drag on for this long? I should've left the village when I still had a chance and gone after Sasuke first instead of searching for Sakura… After all, he's a lot stronger than many of the shinobi here… Maybe then I could have found Sakura in time."

The Hyuga heiress couldn't take this anymore. She grabbed both sides of Naruto's face with her hands and turned his face towards hers. "Uzumaki Naruto!" she started. "Don't you _dare_ blame yourself for this mess! Don't you _dare_ do that! It's _not_ your fault! It's not _anyone's_ fault! But it's not going to help anything if you just sit around and mope!"

"Hinata-chan…"

"You could be using this time to prepare for the journey ahead of us!" the girl cried. "You could be training right now! You should be thinking of ways to increase our chances of making this one last chase a success, not being all grumpy and angry at the world! Naruto-kun, if you want to get back your teammates then get back on your feet and make the world believe it! We can bring back Sasuke and Sakura! This may be our last chance, but we need to give it our all! Do you hear me? Sasuke and Sakura _will_ be brought home, Team 7 will be reunited, and _everyone's_ going to get their happy ending! Understood?"

It was in that moment that Naruto's eyes brightened, and it was in that moment that he really saw the girl in front of him. She wasn't going to let him give up. No, she was going to stay by his side and cheer him on. She didn't want to see him lose, and she wasn't going to allow that. And God forbid, if he didn't listen to her, he had a feeling that Neji would Gentle Fist him all the way around the world. And in eighty days, no less.

He nodded his head, and Hinata's smile returned to her features.

"Good. We'd better start packing then," she said. "We have a _long_ journey ahead of us."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

A loud knock on his door startled him awake. Sasuke hadn't realized he had fallen asleep. And for how long, he didn't know. However, everyone else did know he was _not_ a morning person. So, whoever was knocking on his door must have had a death wish!

"Oy, Sasuke!"

The Uchiha groaned. _That idiot swordsman… Really now, how come when it's not Karin who's bothering me it's Suigetsu who takes up the job?_

"Madara is really _not_ happy!"

Sasuke snorted. Since when was Madara _ever_ happy? The next part, however, hit him like Naruto's Rasengan.

"And Pinkie's back!"

Now that_—that _had Sasuke up and out of his room in a flash.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"God-dad."

Sasuke found it weird for Sakura to be smiling so artlessly while the older Uchiha glared at her and his anger grew, but then again the girl always intrigued him.

"You have some nerve escaping and then coming back here," Madara growled, his eyes never leaving the girl as she sat down. Karin was at her side with seconds to spare. "Did you _think_ I'd welcome you back with opened arms?"

"_Escape_?" Sakura laughed, a laugh that the others found creepy and rivaled that of Orochimaru's. "I only left on a _small_ errand, God-dad. Surely, you of all people should know that _no one_ can escape the Akatsuki."

Madara said no more on the subject. He glared at the man standing behind the kunoichi. "What is _he_ doing here?"

Almost as if she had forgotten her guest, she glanced back at the short man. "Oh, you mean Ginji. I'm sure you remember Kakuzu's banker, but . . ." She turned back to Madara. "I'm afraid he has some news to tell us, and it's not about our banking accounts."

"_News_?" Madara asked, still glaring at the man. "What kind of news?"

"Well, for you, God-dad, I don't think you'll like it very much…" Sakura said, her smile was almost wicked and her voice sickly sweet. Sasuke found that this smile did not fit the girl at all. "Ginji-san," she addressed the banker without looking at him, her tone demanding and commanding. "Why don't you tell him?"

Ginji swallowed hard. "_Anoo_ . . . Madara-sama, it's with great regrets that I inform you . . . that the shinobi Ugatsu, the one you recommended as the new leader of Amegakure, has . . . he has passed away."

"_WHAT_?"

Ginji almost shrank when he heard Madara's roar. (Hell, almost everyone else winced.)

Sakura almost giggled at the Uchiha's reaction. "Why are you so upset, God-dad? It's not like you lost a valuable asset…" She mocked him. "Plus . . . he was usurping leadership anyway."

That last sentence confused the members of Akatsuki except for Sasuke and Karin who knew the contents of the envelope Konan had left behind.

"What are you talking about?" Zetsu asked. "Your father is dead, and there is no other heir apparent."

"Oh, I beg to differ because, you see"—Sakura reached into her small bag, taking out the small envelope—"my father left a will. And what he wrote is this: leadership of Amegakure, after his death, shall be passed down to me. And if I should lose leadership or am unfit to rule, Konoha's Hokage will receive control."

"_What_?" Madara was furious. It was evident in the deadly aura that surrounded him.

Sakura shrugged, almost oblivious to and unaffected by the man's rage. "It's up to you whether you believe me or not. Why don't we have Ginji here read it?"

Ginji now feared for his life. On one hand, he had _Uchiha Madara_ against him. But on the other was God's daughter, _Pein's_ daughter. It was a hard choice but, in the end, he took the will and read it out loud.

" 'I, Nagato, leader of Amegakure, being of sound and disposing mind, do hereby make, publish, and declare the following to be my Last Will and Testament, revoking all previous will and codicils made by me. I declare that I am married to Konan, to which I have referred to herein as my "spouse," and that I have two children now living whose names and birth dates are: Haruno Sakura, March 23, and Haruno Shion, August 16. All references to "my children" in this will include all of the above-named children. I give, devise, and bequeath all of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate, of whatever kind and character, and wherever located, to my spouse, provided that my spouse survives me. I make no provision for my children, knowing that, as their parent, my spouse will continue to be mindful of their needs and requirements. If my spouse does not survive me, then I give, devise and bequeath all of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate, of whatever kind and character, and wherever located, to my children per stripes, and I direct that the share of any child of mine who shall have died leaving no issue shall be divided among my surviving children in equal shares per stripes. And so, it is with a sound mind that I leave the leadership of both Amegakure and Akatsuki to not my spouse but to my oldest daughter, Haruno Sakura. Her mother, my spouse, Konan, shall oversee Haruno Sakura as her dowager and elder. As signed by Nagato, retiring leader of Amegakure.' "

And during the reading of this will, all of the members of Akatsuki and even _Kabuto_ were baffled. All they could do was watch as Madara and Sakura just argued it out, right here and now.

"So _that's_ what you're up to…" Madara retorted. "You're just trying to strengthen your position against me. Fine, but I'll tell you what. Your position doesn't concern me. Your life is cheap. I can get rid of you whenever I want."

"Who said I was doing that, God-dad?" Sakura asked in a viciously innocent voice—a voice coated with poison honey—as she stood from her seat. "All I wanted to do was point out who the usurper was."

"_Excuse me_?"

"As my father's will states," she stated with a clear vindication in her voice, "_I_ am the sole heir apparent to not only Amegakure but to Akatsuki as well. However, my sights are not on Akatsuki. I'm after something much bigger—much, _much_ bigger—and so I've already relinquished my rights to leadership of Akatsuki to you, God-dad."

"Then why not leave Amegakure to its administrators then?" Kabuto suggested, a growing interest in the girl's plan. "If your goal is as important to you as you say it is then leave the village to its officials."

"Let the officials rule?" Sakura asked. She scoffed, that honey voice of hers gone. "On what grounds? They'll just run the village down to ruins just like they did before! I won't let all of my father's work go up in flames! And if any of you have anything else to say, now's the time." The horrid glare and sneer she wore—not that anyone would admit it or let it show—frightened everyone in the room to a silence. "Good." A smile returned to her face and that sickly sweet tone to her voice. "Now, if anyone needs me, I'll be in my room." She turned to Karin. "Let's go, Karin-chan." Unlike when she spoke to Madara, her voice was truly sweet and gentle when she spoke to her ally.

The redhead, however, a bit dazed by Sakura's sudden change of demeanor, could only nod once and followed Sakura out of the room. But when they reached the door, Sakura stopped in her tracks.

"Oh, yes, and one more thing, God-dad." She turned back to the group. On her face may have been an innocent and childlike smile, but her eyes death-glared at the older Uchiha. "I still haven't been able to get back at you for my sister and Isaribi's deaths, so you better watch yourself or you might find yourself at the wrong end of the stick."

"Are you _threatening_ me?"

Her smile grew, the innocence being replaced by a dark satisfaction. "I'm only telling you to be careful, but let me warn you…" She closed her eyes and opened them again, only to have her gaze divert to the ground. "Make me scatter the ashes of another one of my precious peoples, and I _promise_ you,"—her gaze averted back to Madara, a fierce snarl-like tone in her voice and the Rinnegan proudly shining in her focused and determined eyes—"I won't let you go so easily!"

* * *

**Yay, I am _done_ with this fanfic! It ended on a more dramatic note and it's a bit shorter than I had expected, but who cares? On to the third installment! It's going to be called _Sakura DOROPPUSU_ after Utada Hikaru's song, and I'll tell you when it's up, kay? Thank you for sticking to my fanfics and reading them, and please continue to stay with me! Thank you and have a good day!**


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